Asia top stories – weekly summary
ICIS Editorial
17-Dec-2018
SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Here are the top stories from ICIS News Asia and the Middle East for the week ended 14 December 2018.
Bearish sentiment clouds
Middle East and India PE pipe grade
outlook
A bearish sentiment clouds the market outlook
for high density polyethylene (HDPE) pipe grade
material in the Middle East and south Asia
markets.
Asia
PO market sentiment improves on China plant
shutdown
Recent declines in Asian import prices of
propylene oxide (PO) look set to ease, as
domestic yuan-denominated prices in China
started to rebound this week with tighter
prompt supplies.
Asia
melamine on freewheel fall on sluggish demand,
supply deluge
Asia’s melamine prices may further diminish in
a market, already denuded of healthy demand, as
producers, keen to keep inventories low on
their books at year-end, enthuse to sell off
their stocks.
China’s gasoline and
gasoil trading sentiment to stay weak
China’s trading sentiment of gasoline and
gasoil is expected to remain weak next week, as
buyers confine themselves to need-to-basis
purchases amid seasonal winter lull.
China
PE pipe grade moving to stability after steep
declines in Nov
High density polyethylene (HDPE) pipe grade
black 100 spot import prices into China are
finally stablising after steep and consecutive
weeks of decline in November.
China
MMA to stay stable till Feb as supply to
balance out demand
Prices of methyl methacrylate (MMA) in east
China may stay stagnant, as an increase flow of
spot supply could overshadow an uptick in
demand ahead of the Lunar New Year in early
February.
Asia
PMDI hits fresh low on poor buying interest,
demand seen weak
Asia’s polymeric di-p-phenylene isocyanate
(PMDI) prices may hit yet another fresh 2-year
low as offers are declining because sellers
want to elicit buying interest.
China’s domestic ECH
prices plunge to year-lows; recovery
unlikely
China’s domestic epichlorohydrin (ECH) prices
were softer at yuan (CNY) 9,000-10,000/tonne
amid weak demand, a situation likely to
continue in the near term.
Asia
EDC at 4-year highs on tight spot supply,
changing trade flows
Ethylene dichloride (EDC) prices in Asia are at
their highest in four years, and prices may
remain supported into the first quarter of 2019
on continued tightness in spot supply.
Asia
ACN declines on cheaper deep-sea cargoes;
downtrend to be limited
Asia’s acrylonitrile (ACN) prices fell to a
level last seen in early August 2017 due to
inflow of cheaper deep-sea cargoes and
prevailing sluggish demand, but the downtrend
is expected to be limited amid the rebounding
market in China and squeezed margins.
Asia
C3 rebounds on improved sentiment, China PP
market gains
Spot propylene prices in northeast Asia
rebounded, snapping the sharp downtrend from
early November, on the back of improved
sentiment and gains in downstream polypropylene
(PP) market in China.
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