Global PC industry deals with higher feedstock costs, weak demand.

摘要

As global oil prices, which collapsed earlier in the year, a now on the rise, chemical margins are now being squeezed because coronavirus-related lockdowns have hindered any recovery in downstream demand. While polymers used for packaging saw a boost in demand from March to May because of panic buying, market watchers believe that consumption will soon return to normal levels. According to chemical publication ICIS, run rates at monoethylene glycol (MEG) plants had fallen to 55% by late May, compared to over 70% in March. At the same time, MEG port stocks in East China increased to around 1.32MM mt in the week ending May 22, compared to 459K mt at the start of the year.