Purified Terephthalic Acid Asia

摘要

Purified terephthalic acid prices continued to climb in Asia this week, lifted by uncertainty over the impact of a fire at Taiwan Formosa’s Mailiao refinery Saturday, but kept in check by bearish sentiment. The spot prices was assessed at $1,250/mt CFR China Friday, up $25/mt or 2% week on week, bringing the weekly average to $1,260/mt, up $48/mt CFR China from the previous week. Early week, prices jumped on news of the fire in Formosa’s Mailiao refinery, with spot prices assessed Monday at $1,249/mt CFR China, up $25/mt or 2% from last Friday. The company, which has two 550,000 mt/year PTA lines in Mailiao, was ordered by authorities to shut all its petrochemical plants at some time over the next year for safety inspections. Formosa then issued a force majeure on product exports for August loading, leading to speculation that PTA supply would be affected.