North America February 2013: PE moving sideways / PP contracts continue to rise despite spot market turnaround / PVC pointing upwards / PS receding again / Engineering thermoplastics mostly subdued despite cost pressure

摘要

In the wake of January's noticeable price upswing, North American PE notations largely stayed put in February. PIE's cooperation partner RTi (Fort Worth, Texas / USA; www.resinpros.com) reports that the USD 40/t (about EUR 30/t) decline in C2 spot prices put a damper on producers' endeavours to hike prices. Although demand was strong, there was sufficient material in the market to enable processors to secure a rollover. As a result, notations largely moved sideways. Most producers therefore resigned themselves to postponing their calls for hikes of about USD 90/t (EUR 70/t). These plans notwithstanding, nothing on the domestic ethylene front justifies calls for price hikes. However, rising C2 notations in Europe could make the arbitrage option increasingly exciting, RTi warns, pointing out that such a development would significantly change the existing supply situation.