Ethylene prices are expected to remain stable this week, at a small discount to the June contract price amid thin trade in the spot market as the industry awaits confirmation of Total's Antwerp cracker returning from maintenance and ramping up run rates.
OLEFINS
Propylene prices will remain steady this week propped up by steady demand. Spot prices are likely to continue trading at a 2% discount to the June CP.
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Butadiene sentiment is influenced by Asia following prices dropping to their lowest level in nearly 16 months Friday, Chinese prices fell on thin demand and oversupply.
European butadiene supply is expected to remain solid in the lead-up to the second wave of cracker turnarounds in autumn.
POLYMERS
Polystyrene players will look to finalize June contract prices as sellers push for higher prices amid an improvement in demand.
Polyethylene terephthalate markets will see demand healthy and supplies tight.
European PE prices are expected to slide further this week as the industry looks for a price floor.
Bearish sentiment will persist amid muted consumer demand and ample material supply across all PE grades, including pressure from imports.
Polypropylene sentiment is also bearish amid abundant supplies.
However, stock levels were heard low in polyvinyl chloride and contract prices are expected to roll over.
AROMATICS
European styrene prices will see support until the end of the month due to the shut down of Trinseo's Bohlen styrene unit in early June.
Nevertheless, market participants say that the upside to prices from Trinseo's production issues will be limited due to the arrival of imports in June-July offsetting the reduction in supply.
Benzene supplies were not particularly tight as outages were heard in downstream styrene and cyclohexane plants.
The xylenes market is expected to be a mixed bag this week. Orthoxylene supplies in Europe are expected to ease next week onwards as two large capacity plants have restarted after maintenances and are gradually ramping up operation rates.
Paraxylene is expected to look towards Asia and mixed xylenes will track gasoline.
METHANOL AND MTBE
European methanol prices are likely to come off following the Eur9/mt rise of past two weeks.
The price increases came ahead of Methanex's contract price settlement for the third quarter and despite global methanol markets continuing to be long.
European ethers markets continue to be heavily weighed down by the weak energy backdrop.
MTBE markets remain well supplied with demand seen as stable though not strong.
ETBE activity is likely to pick up with increased demand in Belgium and Scandinavia.
INTERMEDIATES AND SOLVENTS
Oxy solvent products are all feeling downward pressure on prices with the biggest gainers, IPA and Acetone, of the past few months registering the most significant declines.
The declines are the result of improved supply from producers and increased imports from abroad.
Phthalic anhydride prices are expected to soften as domestic supplies improves as turnarounds cease.
The acetic acid market is anticipating a hefty drop in the feedstock costs as methanol Q3 CP negotiations are under way.
VAM inventories remain low, which has arrested the decline of spot prices.
Sipchem's plant in Saudi Arabia will be out in maintenance until the end of the month.
The EU's duty-free import quota is running low, with the remaining 13% likely to be allocated in the next month or so.
In the monoethylene glycol, market is awaiting the restart of Shell's Moerdijk, the Netherlands MEG plant imminently.
Acrylonitrile remain short in supply and is so far ignoring bearishness in propylene.
