Despite increasing market challenges, a key Indonesian producer has kept spot PP and PE offers stable compared to the previous week. Market sources indicate that the impact of a strengthened Rupiah and weak demand has yet to influence the latest price list due to limited supply conditions.
Even with a stronger Yuan against the US dollar, holding prices stable has become a challenge, let alone introducing any increases. These constant price adjustments underscore suppliers' efforts to balance maintaining margins with the need to respond to subdued demand.
Despite this tepid demand, Shenhua maintained a firm stance on auction prices, raising homo-PP by CNY 10/ton while keeping LLDPE prices unchanged. This move highlights producers' unwillingness to reduce prices further, despite the apparent lack of buyer enthusiasm.
Despite stronger futures contracts on the Dalian Commodity Exchange, confidence among Chinese suppliers remained low, preventing any significant increase in spot PP and PE prices. In fact, spot LLDPE film prices softened by CNY 50/ton, while homo-PP prices held steady.
The Yuan has appreciated by approximately 1.1% against the US dollar over the past week, reaching around 71.6 Yuan to a dollar as of 08 August. A stronger local currency typically exerts downward pressure on commodity prices denominated in that currency.