Asia Daily PP and PE Overview – 5 December 2018

CHINA

•         Sentiment is steady in local market
•        Import PP holds firm, PE inches higher 

Polypropylene (PP)

Overseas sellers maintain firms stance on import homo-PP offers to China though it seems that buyers are not as aggressive as they were at the beginning of the week. As a result, the upper end of the overall price range might see fading support for further hike.

At the lower end, sellers are seeing more inquiries for prices at $1030-1040/ton CFR China, Middle Eastern origin.   

Polyethylene (PE)

Regardless of the falling upstream costs, overseas sellers continue implementing $10/ton hike on import offers and several claimed to have sold out allocation for the week, including Thailand, Indian and Qatari makers.

 SOUTHEAST ASIA

•        Local Indonesia market slides further 
•        Falling ethylene costs just cap the PE market from recovering 

Polypropylene (PP)

The regional PP market remains relatively firm with international suppliers started raising offers to Vietnam in conjunction with better sales in other markets, particularly China. 

In fact, Indian homo-PP surfaces at $15/ton hike week on week to $1085/ton CIF Vietnam, LC AS term while Saudi homo-PP injection is no longer available at $1055/ton, instead, jumped to $1070/ton with the same term.

In contrast to the latest development in the import ground, local traders continue cutting prices in Indonesia, sending offers to IDR17,000,000-17,100,000/ton ($1140-1147/ton) without VAT, FD Indonesia, cash term. Buyers are bidding for IDR500,000/ton ($34/ton) lower to deal.

Polyethylene (PE)

Ethylene costs based on CFR Northeast Asia plunged $130/ton from a week ago and hit very hard buyer confidence in the near term outlook. In the meantime, USA LLDPE C6 film cargoes are available in Southeast Asia at $960-1000/ton CIF, LC AS that cast more doubt to the outlook. 

“We bid at $940/ton to purchase 300 tons but the supplier rejected. Market is not solid and therefore we withdraw from the deal for now,” an Indonesian trader added.