Styrene Europe

摘要

Northwest European styrene monomer spot prices dropped $15/mt Friday to levels last seen in 2012, at an assessment of $1,525/mt FOB ARA. Supply remains prohibitively long, and an expected construction-led resurgence in EPS demand has so far failed to materialize. The last time prices were seen this low was November 23, 2012 at $1,504/mt FOB ARA. The drop in Styrene was in unison with feedstock benzene which also marked a four-month low. The 5-30 day CIF ARA benzene benchmark shed $12.50/mt, to be assessed at $1,305/mt, leaving the styrene/benzene spread at $220/mt. Styrene weakness in Europe is being compounded by EPS, where expectations for a post-summer resurgence have not yet transpired. “September is [typically] a good month for EPS but it looks like it’s not there,” said a source, adding that he was not upbeat about the outlook for Q3. EPS producers said the bulk of the weakness in consumption stemmed from an overall softness in large, developed European markets.