Asia Daily PP and PE Overview – 12 December 2018

CHINA

•       Domestic spot homo-PP continue to slide in Eastern China
•       Limited movement in the PE market 

Polypropylene (PP)

Suppliers in Eastern China market continue offering CNY50-100/ton ($7-15/ton) reduction on spot homo-PP cargoes amid the tumbled purchasing sentiment. 

In the import market, suppliers are holding offers mostly unchanged and cargoes priced at below the $1050/ton threshold remains scarce. Chinese buyers do not seem to be in rush for new replenishments, but rather calm and wait on the sideline.    

Polyethylene (PE)

Overseas sellers either maintained very firm stance on import offers to China or claimed sold out availability. In fact, traders reported that major Singaporean maker oversold 40 percent of the normal allocation, which give them an upper hand in this tug-of-war. 

Meanwhile, Thailand producer maintain HDPE film offers at $1160/ton CFR China, LC AS term with no deals achieved so far as buyers started showing stronger resistance.    

SOUTHEAST ASIA 

•        Southeast Asian suppliers face difficulty to lift PP prices 
•        Local homo-PP market in Indonesia firms up due to a confluence of factors
•       Regional PE market remains calm 

Polypropylene (PP)

Major Thailand maker down-adjusted final prices for the regular homo-PP cargoes to Vietnam by another $20/ton from the previous trading day, to $1100/ton CIF, LC AS term. This totals a reduction of $60/ton from the initial price list given in the prior week. 

Meanwhile, Indonesian buyers also see $30/ton dropped in offers for Vietnamese homo-PP yarn compared to the beginning of the week to $1130/ton with the same term. Buyers here are rather calm.

In contrast to the development in the import ground, domestic traders in Indonesia are lifting offers for homo-PP by about IDR500,000/ton ($35/ton) progressively from the beginning of the week citing the lack of local availability, stronger upstream costs, and the exchange rate.   

Polyethylene (PE)

There is very limited movement in the regional PE market. Major producers from Thailand and Middle Eastern informed buyers of the sold-out condition for LLDPE film, and yet the market does not seem to react aggressively.

“Our warehouses are full, mostly USA cargoes purchased previously. We have no plan to make additional purchases for the time being,” a Vietnamese buyer commented.