Polymer Price Reports Released for April 2018
The latest polymer price reports and charts have been released by Plastrack.
Standard Thermoplastics Trends April 2018:
Ethylene (C2) Feedstock – in April we saw a Eur 13/mt increase in pricing levels on the back of small increases in the price of crude oil and naptha. Supply conditions for ethylene monomer remain stable with normal levels of demand.
Propylene (C3) – In line with other olefinic monomers propylene saw a slight increase in the month of Eur 8/mt. This is driven by the slight upward movements in crude oil and naptha. Supply conditions remain stable with upcoming cracker maintenance not likely to impact the market situation in the near term.
LDPE, LLDPE, HDPE are experiencing slight upward pricing pressure in line with the movement in associated monomer pricing levels. Supply and demand is well balanced.
PP has experienced a slight upward pricing movement of Eur 2/mt. Supply and demand are balanced despite some maintenance plant outages. These planned outages are not expected to impact pricing levels in the near term.
PVC pricing levels increased slightly in the month Eur 9/mt. Demand levels have returned to normal from their lower position in previous periods and supply is at normal levels. The market is balanced.
Styrenics the predicted significant downward price movement has been seen on the back of falling styrene monomer pricing levels. The market is well balanced from a demand and supply perspective. Further price falls are anticipated in the near term.
Engineering Thermoplastics Trends April 2018:
Benzene feedstock pricing has fallen back slightly by (Eur 21/mt) The market is currently well balanced from a demand and supply perspective.
PC price increases of Eur 6/mt were seen during the month. There is little improvement in the supply situation with supply remaining tight.
PA6 pricing is stable. Supply remains tight with long producer lead times and low inventory levels. Further price increases are expected in the coming months.
PA66 supply remains at critically tight levels although increased ADN production is now beginning to flow into the supply chain (although this will take time to feed through its various process stages). Price increases of Eur 49/mt were seen in the month.
PBT pricing was stable in the period although the supply situation remains tight. Further price increases are predicted in the coming months.
POM pricing increased by Eur 50/mt during the month with supply remaining tight. Upward price pressure in expected to continue in the coming months. Low import levels are a cause of concern.
PMMA pricing is stable and the supply situation is continuing to ease.
Plastrack Polymer Price Index
Plastrack is a web based tool which can be accessed by desktop, tablet or mobile and provides pricing data on the most common feedstocks and polymers. Prices are updated on a monthly basis based on information obtained by Plastrack researchers directly from plastics producers, traders, distributors and converters. Visit Plastrack’s website for more information.
