Argus Polymers. Contents. Formerly Argus DeWitt Polymers. Key Prices. Americas. Asia-Pacific. Issue 17-1 Thursday 5 January 2017

Transcription

1 Formerly Argus DeWitt Polymers Key Prices Polymer markets Timing US monthly contract price EOR Timing Western Europe monthly contract price Asia-Pacific cfr CMP spot current ± LDPE liner film Dec 1,543-1,609 Dec 1,520-1,557 1,320-1, LLDPE butene Dec 1,389-1,433 Dec 1,456-1,504 1,120-1, HDPE BM Dec 1,389-1,433 Dec 1,451-1,504 1,100-1, HDPE injection Dec 1,411-1,455 Dec 1,461-1,520 1,090-1, PP copolymer Dec 1,113-1,179 Dec 1,350-1,398 1,090-1, PP raffia Dec 1,191-1,239 1,010-1, PP homo, GP IM Dec 1,069-1,135 Dec 1,287-1,334 GPPS Dec 1,609-1,720 Dec 2,134-2,182 1,290-1, PVC pipe Dec 1,014-1,058 Dec 1,128-1, Highlights LLDPE butene global prices Americas December PE contracts still not fully settled. PVC producers seek February price hike. PP prices expected to rise in January. PS January prices will rise on benzene. 1,700 1,600 1,500 cfr China spot current NWE monthly contract US monthly contract Western Europe PE market quiet as participants return from holiday. PVC prices settle 15/t lower in December. December PP prices move down 30/t with monomer. PS producers lose margin in December despite 140/t price increase. 1,400 1,300 1,200 1, Sep Oct Dec Jan 17 Asia-Pacific PE prices are poised to decline on weak demand and falling LLDPE futures. PVC is likely to extend losses on slow Chinese demand and the cash crisis in India. PP edged lower on weak fundamentals and expectations of a rise in supplies. PS values were supported in Asia by a firm SM market. Contents Americas 2 Western Europe 4 Asia-Pacific 6 Copyright 2017 Argus Media group

2 Americas: Focus on polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride Feedstocks US ethylene contracts for December rose by 2 /lb to / lb this week, following an uptick in spot prices after several ethylene plants went down for maintenance. Spot prices have started to rise in the new year, with January volumes trading between /lb to 29.5 /lb on Wednesday. US polymer-grade propylene spot material has begun strengthening in the new year, with January bids at 35.5 /lb on Wednesday against no offers. US benzene January contracts settled in a split, up by 33 / USG and up by 40 /USG to 267 /USG and 275 /USG, respectively. Benzene increased as imports from South Korea were lower than anticipated, causing supply to tighten. Spot prices continue to rise. Polyethylene US polyethylene (PE) contract negotiations for December are ongoing, with reports of a 2 /lb decline and of flat pricing for the month. Prices are expected to reach a final settlement by the end of this week, as market participants work to close the books on For now, the Argus December price still reflects a 2 /lb price drop, but that could be revised upward by next week if there is further evidence that the majority of contracts settled flat. January pricing appears likely to hold steady, with no price increase announcements for this month on the table. However, most producers, including Dow Chemical, ExxonMobil, LyondellBasell, Nova and Formosa Plastics, have informed customers they will implement a 5 /lb increase, effective on 1 February. The proposed increases are based on rising ethylene costs, potential feedstock tightness with planned cracker outages, as well as an expected shift from a balanced to a tight market as demand improves. The market remains fairly balanced, for now, though producers inventories are low after two months of heavy exports. Spot availability has become more limited, and prices have inched higher. December sales data have not yet been released, but domestic demand during the month was believed to be seasonally weak. However, export demand was thought to be strong enough to make up for any drop in sales from November. Final November sales figures showed that total sales rose by 10.2pc compared with October, including a 32pc increase in exports. US producers added around 110mn lbs to inventories In November, according to final data released this week by US polymer markets Timing Monthly contract price /lb LDPE liner film Dec LLDPE butene Dec LLDPE hexene Dec LLDPE octene Dec HDPE injection Dec HDPE HMW film Dec HDPE BM Dec PVC pipe Dec PP copolymer Dec PP homo Dec PS crystal Dec PS high impact Dec US polymer spot export /lb fas/houston bagged ± LDPE liner film LLDPE butene HDPE injection HDPE HMW film HDPE BM PVC pipe US PE production 3,700 3,600 3,500 3,400 3,300 3,200 3, mn lb Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov ACC/Vault the American Chemistry Council s Plastics Industry Statistics Group. Domestic demand in January is likely to remain seasonally weak, though the February price increase announcements could spur January sales. Polyethylene production is expected to remain strong this month, particularly as Nova Chemicals ramps up its new Alberta, Canada, capacity. Logistics backlogs at packaging warehouses and at the Houston port could limit export options in Copyright 2017 Argus Media group Page 2 of 9

3 Americas: Focus on polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride the near-term, which could cause some producers to consider slowing their operating rates. Some upstream cracker outages may limit production at downstream polyethylene units, but the extent of any plant downtime could not be confirmed. December production figures have not yet been released, but there were no major outages, apart from a brief outage at Dow s Plaquemine, Louisiana, chemical plant early in the month. Final November production data showed plants operated at near 96pc of capacity. Year-to-date 2016 production through November was up by 1.5pc from Export prices are expected to rise, but with warehouses full, fresh offers have been scarce. Some producers are targeting an increase of as much as 3 /lb for export prices. Polyvinyl chloride PVC contracts for December appear to be holding steady after November s 2 /lb decline, with producers unwilling to offer further price relief, particularly as feedstock ethylene costs begin to rise. December ethylene contracts settled higher by 2 /lb to /lb this week, and spot prices are climbing. January spot ethylene traded at between /lb to 29.5 /lb on Wednesday, up from around 25 /lb in mid-december. January PVC contracts appear likely to hold flat with no price increase proposals on the table. However, producers have announced an increase of 4 /lb, effective on 1 February. The proposed increase is based on expectations for further gains in ethylene costs, particularly with at least two large cracker turnarounds scheduled this month. December sales data have not yet been released, but while demand was expected to improve from November, it was still believed to be seasonally weak. Total sales in November declined by 9.3pc compared with October, with domestic demand down by 10.6pc and export sales 5.9pc lower over the same period. Year-to-date 2016 demand through November rose by 5pc for export and domestic sales. Demand in January should improve amid optimism about the housing and construction sector in Construction spending in November was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1,182.1bn, up by 0.9pc from the revised October estimate and 4.1pc higher than in November 2015, according to US Census Bureau numbers. Spending on private construction rose by 1pc from October, while public construction gained 0.8pc from the revised October estimate. Market participants are optimistic that the construction sector will show even more strength, with increases expected in housing PVC production 1,400 1,300 1,200 1,100 1, mn lb Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov ACC/Vault and infrastructure spending, which are large markets for PVC. December production numbers are not available, but operating rates last month were affected by upstream maintenance at vinyl chloride monomer plants and a turnaround at a Louisiana PVC unit. Final November data showed production declined by 5.8pc from October, with plants operating at 81.2pc of capacity. Production this month is expected to improve from December. However, one producer may have to cut operating rates because of an upstream cracker turnaround this month. Export prices have declined slightly from the end of December levels to around $ /t fas Houston. However, with lower Asia-Pacific prices, there may be less appetite for US material. Export volumes should remain strong in January. Polypropylene: Supplemental December polypropylene (PP) contracts settled in a wide range, with many contracts tracking the 4 /lb decline in December polymer-grade propylene (PGP) contracts, but others that had already received significant price reductions earlier in the year got a lesser decline. The price movements generally keep producer margins stable, ending margin compression from earlier in the year. Prices this month are expected to increase, as PGP prices strengthen. January PGP bids rose to 35.5 /lb against no offers on Wednesday, higher than the December contract price of 31.5 /lb. Total Petrochemicals this week said it will increase prices for all grades of PP by the amount of monomer movement from December to January. Copyright 2017 Argus Media group Page 3 of 9

4 Americas: Focus on polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride December production figures are not out yet, but producers were believed to have continued their reduced operating rates from November, when plants ran on average at 80.5pc of capacity. Producers do not want to rebuild significant inventories. Strong demand is expected to return this quarter, which could result in tighter supplies. That could allow producers to raise margins. However, the threat of returning imports will limit how much producers will attempt to boost margins. Polystyrene: Supplemental After contracts settled flat for December, US polystyrene prices are poised to increase this month, with producers announcing price hikes of 5-6 /lb. The proposed price hikes are based on higher benzene costs, with January benzene contracts settling in a split, up by 33 /USG and up by 40 /USG to 267 /USG and 275 /USG, respectively. Every 10 /USG movement in benzene usually translates into a 1 /lb movement for polystyrene. When combined with the December increases of 11 /USG and 15 /USG, along with a 2 /lb rise in ethylene costs, the higher January prices should help cover the increase in feedstock costs. December sales numbers are still to be released, but demand was expected to show typical seasonal weakness. Demand this month should also remain relatively weak on the same seasonal factors, particularly with the price increase on the table. Demand typically begins to ramp up in late February or March in advance of the busy spring disposable season. No major production problems were reported, and supply and demand should remain balanced this month. Europe: Focus on polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride Feedstocks The January ethylene monthly contract price (MCP) was settled at 985/t, 45/t higher than December, reflecting an escalation in feedstock costs. The market has been quiet since the beginning of the month with no significant production issues. The propylene MCP also increased by 45/t in January, with little activity since before the Christmas holidays. The January styrene MCP rose by 105/t from December, reflecting an increase of around 50/t in the NWE spot price last month, as well as a 175/t upward movement in the MCP of principal feedstock benzene. The spot price has continued to increase in January despite high styrene margins encouraging strong European production, supported by high prices in the Asia-Pacific market. Polyethylene PE producers have announced bullish price intentions as the market returns from the Christmas holiday period, although a clear picture for January is unlikely to emerge until week two at the earliest. Many buyers will operate at low rates this week, awaiting the return of staff from annual leave, while the Epiphany holiday on 6 January and Orthodox Christmas on 7 January are further constraining production and consumption in southern and eastern Europe. Several sellers have announced price increases of 60-70/t after the January Western Europe polymer markets /t Timing Monthly contract price ± from Nov LDPE liner film Dec 1,435-1, LLDPE butene Dec 1,375-1, HDPE injection Dec 1,380-1, HDPE HMW Film Dec 1,365-1, HDPE BM Dec 1,370-1, PVC pipe Dec 1,065-1, PP copolymer Dec 1,275-1, PP raffia Dec 1,125-1, PP homo Dec 1,215-1, PS crystal Dec 2,015-2, PS high impact Dec 2,105-2, ethylene MCP settled 45/t higher than December, although buyers will target an increase in line with ethylene as a maximum. Producers that are preparing for and are constrained by upcoming maintenance are likely to be firmer in January price negotiations. Producers will aim to expand their margins in the first half of this year to regain some of their losses from the second half of They will be helped by robust contractual demand largely in line with last year while a busy turnaround schedule has the potential to exacerbate shortages created by any unplanned issues during the spring. The maintenance schedule will begin in March, taking 5.9pc of total capacity off line in the second quarter the largest percentage in one quarter Copyright 2017 Argus Media group Page 4 of 9

5 Europe: Focus on polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride HDPE BM premium to C2 NWE 1,750 1,500 1,250 1,000 Gross premium (right) HDPE BM gross contract del NWE (left) Ethylene MCP (left) Jan 14 Jun 14 Nov 14 Apr 15 Sep 15 Feb 16 Jul 16 Dec 16 since the fourth quarter of Three of the crackers with planned turnarounds are in the ARA region, meaning that any delays or production issues at any other crackers will have a disproportionate tightening effect on feedstock supply to PE producers in the region. At least three PE plants in the ARA region will also have planned turnarounds during this period, along with another two plants at a site closer to central Europe. The volume of incremental imports that would help to bridge any unexpected supply gaps is also likely to be fairly low in the early part of High Chinese spot prices in November and December when volumes for arrival in January and February would have needed to be fixed set the offer price for marginal imports at an unattractive level for most European buyers at that time. The recent drop in the value of the euro against the dollar the exchange rate has reached its lowest since early 2003 this month will further reduce the competitiveness of imports. Lower imports owing to the devaluation of the euro against the dollar played a significant part in the shortages of spring Initial order entry for January may be slightly lower than is customary for the time of year, when buyers typically need to replenish their stocks having emptied warehouses to meet end-of-year inventory targets. Some converters have higher stocks than they usually would at the beginning of the month, after they eschewed destocking during December in anticipation of January s ethylene MCP increase. This is particularly true for larger converters that have more flexibility with endof-year working capital. But the busy turnaround season and potential for tightness may play on some buyers minds before they decide to deplete their stocks too much. /t Polyvinyl chloride The PVC market remains very quiet in January, with the number of market participants that are yet to return from holidays obscuring the demand picture and delaying initial price discussions. December prices largely fell by 15/t with monomer, with some variation between individual customers based on their November agreement. Downstream restocking in January typically counteracts weak demand in December caused by converters lowering their working capital position before the end of the year so producers often consider the two months together. Sellers lost 5-10/t versus ethylene on a gross basis in November and December, so will be particularly keen to raise prices by more than half of the 45/t ethylene MCP increase in January. Buyers will wait to see whether demand lives up to forecast before formulating firm price targets. PVC margins remain very healthy despite producers slight losses towards the end of Although demand did not pick up noticeably between 2015 and 2016 and higher volumes of imports and recycled material accounted for most of the growth producers were able to increase margins in the first half of the year and largely maintain them in the quieter second half. Initial contract nominations for 2017 are roughly the same as those at the beginning of Many converters in the pipe industry did not need all of their contracted material in 2016 as a lack of new building projects weighed on demand in the second half of the year, but by nominating the same amounts again they are demonstrating their optimism for an upturn. Production in the southern European construction industry showed signs of picking up in 2016, and there is hope that central and eastern Europe can recover from its recent slump. Eurozone PMI manufacturing - forward trend Eurozone manufacturing PMI Poly. (Eurozone manufacturing PMI) PMI (Mfg) 30 Jan 07 Dec 08 Dec 10 Dec 12 Dec 14 Dec 16 Markit Copyright 2017 Argus Media group Page 5 of 9

6 Europe: Focus on polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride More general economic data continue to display cautious optimism for recovery in Europe. The December eurozone manufacturing PMI of 54.9 was the highest since April 2011 with improvements in all countries surveyed. The euro-dollar exchange rate which stands at its weakest level since February 2003 in January has helped by deterring imports while improving European export competitiveness. Specifically in the PVC industry, the weak euro has contributed significantly to an increase in the attractiveness of sales to Turkey, which offered commensurate or higher netbacks to European sales for most of This reduces the pressure on producers in monthly domestic contract price negotiations particularly in the south of Europe where exports to Turkey are logistically easier and was a factor in their preservation of margins despite remarkably stable production in the second half of Polypropylene: Supplemental The PP market is balanced at the beginning of Prices moved down by 30/t in line with monomer in December, despite most producers initially hoping for a smaller decline or a rollover. Some buyers looked to buy more material in December, anticipating the 45/t increase in the January propylene MCP, but found incremental availability to be limited by manufacturers recovering from earlier production issues or preparing for maintenance in the first half of this year. The maintenance season starts earlier for PP than PE, with a Belgian plant scheduled to begin a month-long turnaround in the middle of January, and is likely to keep propylene tight until the summer. While planned maintenance alone should not lead to shortages, it can reduce the flexibility of the market to bridge any unplanned supply constraints. Polystyrene: Supplemental A second consecutive three-figure increase in the styrene MCP will create further problems for PS producers in January, after they were forced to deal with a 170/t upward styrene movement last month. A range of price settlements occurred last month, but on average producers fell short of passing through the full cost increase to their customers as prices increased by 140/t. A true picture of January demand will not emerge until consumers particularly those in central and southern Europe return from the Christmas holiday period. Production of HIPS is slightly constrained by an unplanned shutdown of a line at a French plant that occurred on 1 January. The line is expected to stay down for three weeks, although so far buyers have not suffered significant shortages as a result. Producers have announced that they will raise prices by /t in January, following the 105/t increase in the styrene MCP. Asia-Pacific: Focus on polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride Feedstocks Ethylene: Asia s ethylene prices remained stable, with market participants only just returning from holiday. Demand is expected to slow down in the run up to the lunar new year holidays on 28 January. But supply may also decline, particularly in southeast Asia and Taiwan where major crackers are undergoing turnarounds. Propylene: Northeast Asia s propylene market was stable. Trading was subdued at the start of the new year, but prices were supported by continued high derivative operations. Propylene prices in southeast Asia rose as demand from Indonesian consumers showed an apparent increase. Styrene: SM prices in Asia were largely rangebound at around $1,200/t cfr China, supported by balanced-to-tight supplies and firm upstream markets. But demand is expected to weaken from some styrenics producers in January ahead of the lunar new year holidays. Polyethylene Prices of imported polyethylene were stable to firm this week. Offers at the lower end were limited with cargoes arriving from Iran, the US and India sold out. Producers maintained firm offers amid cost pressures. But the outlook remains weak because of falling linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) futures prices and amid weaker seasonal demand. High-density polyethylene (HDPE) film prices have firmed by $20/t to $1,120-1,160/t. Low-density polyethylene (LDPE) and LLDPE prices were steady at $1,320-1,360/t and $1,120-1,160/t respectively. Demand has fallen as liquidity is squeezed around the year-end holidays. Consumers have weaker buying intentions because of rising raw-material prices. Orders of agricultural films are likely to slacken in the run-up to the lunar new year break in late January. Trading activity will fall from mid- January and will be completely muted during the lunar new year holidays, which start on 27 January. Speculative trading Copyright 2017 Argus Media group Page 6 of 9

7 ASIA-PACIFIC: FOCUS ON POLYETHYLENE AND POLYVINYL CHLORIDE Asia non-integrated PE cash margin 1,800 1,700 1,600 1,500 1,400 1,300 1,200 1,100 1,000 Non-integrated PE cash margin (right) HDPE (left) LLDPE (left) LDPE (left) Oct Jul Nov Jan 17 has eased against the backdrop of a falling futures market. The Chinese government is making efforts to curb air pollution in north China, forcing some smaller petrochemical converters to shut down or reduce operating rates, which has also limited demand. Supplies of imported cargoes have eased since the end of LDPE availability has slowly increased, with more supplies expected in the coming weeks. Supplies of lower-priced cargoes from the US and Brazil have been limited. Domestic supply is growing with the start of new capacity in the fourth quarter of Pucheng Clean Energy has been shut down since 25 December, but will restart in January. The impact on the market is minimal. LLLDPE prices have fallen by Yn125/t from last week to Yn9,800-10,300/t ($1,130-1,188/t). HDPE film prices slipped to Yn10,300-10,500 ($1,188-1,221/t), while LDPE prices declined to Yn11,600-12,200/t on increasing supplies. Non-integrated PE margins have dropped to negative levels because of a relatively stable upstream. Regional producers are willing to lower offers in light of weak Chinese demand and poor margins. Despite this, imported PE is firmer than supplies from domestic sellers. In southeast Asia, PE was steady amid the continuing lull from last week s holidays. Trading is expected to start from next week with fresh offers for February and March due to emerge in mid-january. But expectations are mostly bearish for January and February because of the impact of the lunar new year holidays celebrated in countries including Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam. 0 Asia-Pacific polymer markets Prices ± China spot cfr CMP LDPE liner film 1,320-1, LLDPE butene 1,120-1, HDPE injection 1,090-1, HDPE HMW film 1,120-1, HDPE BM 1,100-1, PVC pipe PP copolymer 1,090-1, PP raffia 1,010-1, PS crystal 1,290-1, PS high impact 1,340-1, Southeast Asia spot cfr LDPE liner film 1,280-1, LLDPE butene 1,160-1, HDPE injection 1,140-1, HDPE HMW film 1,150-1, China ex-works Yn/t ± Import parity PP raffia 8,600-9, , PP copolymer 9,400-9, ,084-1, HDPE HMW Film 10,300-10, ,189-1, LDPE liner film 11,600-12, ,340-1, LLDPE butene 9,800-10, ,130-1, PVC pipe 7,600-7, PS crystal 11,300-12, ,305-1, PS high impact 12,000-12, ,387-1, Outages Shutdown Plant KTA Duration PetroChina Daqing HD-LLD 300 Dec25-Dec30 Shenhua Xinjiang HD-LLD 300 October Pucheng Clean energy HD-LLD 300 Dec25-Jan Lanzhou PC HDPE 180 Jan5-Jan10 Demand in Vietnam is likely to slow from mid-january with fresh purchasing expected again in February. Stocks are mostly balanced for all major grades in Indonesia and Vietnam. But fresh arrivals in February are expected to raise stock levels in Vietnam, which may pressure prices in that market. LDPE film supplies remain mostly tight because of reduced supplies from the Middle East. HDPE and LLDPE film and injection molding supplies are balanced, compared with slow demand in southeast Asia. ± Copyright 2017 Argus Media group Page 7 of 9

8 ASIA-PACIFIC: FOCUS ON POLYETHYLENE AND POLYVINYL CHLORIDE Polyvinyl chloride The Chinese polyvinyl chloride (PVC) market was steady following previous falls. Trading sentiment also strengthened while the low offers seen previously have been removed from the market. Deals remain limited ahead of the new year holidays, which will reduce buying activity from mid-january until mid-february. Weaker PVC futures and falling carbide prices sent carbidebased PVC prices lower to Yn6,800-6,900/t last week, with prices remaining at similar levels this week. Prices have fallen by Yn1,900/t from their peak in mid-november. Ethylenebased PVC also fell to Yn7,900-8,000/t or $ /t. Domestic ethylene-based PVC is trading at the same level as imported material after the recent price slump. Carbide-based PVC export prices have dropped to $ /t fob while export volumes have also fallen. Operating rates at local producers remain high. But most supplies are still being sold in the domestic market, leaving limited volumes for export. Export prices for Chinese origins are not competitive with other supplies. The import market has remained unchanged since Formosa lowered its January offers to $920/t. Market participants said Taiwanese offers may be adjusted again for February delivery, under pressure from a falling Chinese carbide-based PVC market and the Indian cash flow crisis. Offers from Japan have emerged at $ /t, following the trend in Taiwanese supplies. The outlook for imported PVC remains bearish amid the continuing slow season. The Indian market has continued to weaken as a result of the cash flow crisis that started in early November, which has Asia non-integrated PVC cash margin 1,100 1, PVC cash margin (right) PVC cfr China (left) Mar Apr Mar Jan limited trading volumes. Indian domestic-origin cargoes are trading at $1,000/t. Taiwan-origin offers dropped to $920/t but trading volumes have slipped during the crisis. The southeast Asian PVC market also eased with falling Formosa offers. Mainstream prices declined to $920/t cfr southeast Asia. Upstream, EDC prices fell to $ /t cfr northeast Asia while VCM prices dropped to $ /t. PVC margins have slipped recently from the highest point reached last year. Polypropylene Prices of PP cargoes imported to China softened this week on a seasonal fall in demand. Downstream converters may start to shut down in the third week in January for the lunar new year holiday. The market will be completely quiet during the official holiday from 27 January to 2 February and may only fully resume in mid-february. The slide in PP futures also dampened trading sentiment. Homo-polymer values eased by $10/t to $1,010-1,040/t, with some lower end offers from Russia at $1,000/t. Co-polymers were steady at $1,090-1,130/t. Demand continued to fall as the lunar new year holidays approached. Ningbo Fuji, a new PDH producer, is running its PP unit at an 80pc operating rate. Oriental Yangzijiang restarted its 400,000 t/yr PP unit this week. The outlook is bearish on expectations of slow seasonal demand and incremental capacities due to start up in China. PP raffia spot prices slumped to 8,600-9,000 yuan/t exwarehouse ($990-1,037/t on an import parity basis) in east China, dragged down by the futures market. Prices were lower by Yn350/t from the same period last week. Co-polymers also dropped to Yn9,400-9,800/t, along with falling futures. The trend for the import market is steadier. Domestic prices are now lagging behind import cargoes by $3-12/t as new capacities starts up in China. PP prices in southeast Asia were largely stable this week amid sluggish trading. New offers are expected to emerge within the next two weeks. PP supply remains as ample in this region and this is expected to continue following the start of new MTO plants in China and new units in India in this quarter. Polystyrene Imported polystyrene (PS) prices in China remained steady, supported by a firm upstream market. SM remained well supported in Asia on balanced-to-tight supply and steady demand from China. Copyright 2017 Argus Media group Page 8 of 9

9 Asia-Pacific: Focus on polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride Imported general purpose polystyrene (GPPS) prices remained at $1,290-1,320/t, while high-impact polystyrene (HIPS) prices were unchanged at $1,340-1,370/t. Major Taiwanese producers have maintained offers at $1,350/t and $1,420/t for GPPS and HIPS respectively. Deals may have been concluded at a $10-20/t discount. Non-integrated PS margins rebounded to $30/t, an improvement compared with previous negative levels. Demand has slowed after year-end orders have been fulfilled. Consumers have reduced prompt purchases and kept inventories low. The market will be muted from mid-january because of lunar new year holidays. The outlook is bearish as the upstream market is expected to weaken in the near term. GPPS slipped to Yn11,400-12,100/t ($1,316-1,398/t), while HIPS was trading at Yn12,000-12,800/t amid limited deals done. Announcements Argus is uniting its businesses under a single brand name. From January 2017, the name of Argus DeWitt Polymers will change to Argus Polymers. Please contact info@argusmedia.com if you have any questions. Argus Polymers is published by Argus Media group Registered office Argus House, 175 St John St, London, EC1V 4LW Tel: Fax: sales@argusmedia.com ISSN: Copyright notice Copyright 2017 Argus Media group. All rights reserved. All intellectual property rights in this publication and the information published herein are the exclusive property of Argus, and/or its licensors (including exchanges) and may only be used under licence from Argus. Without limiting the foregoing, by accessing this publication you agree that you will not copy or reproduce or use any part of its contents (including, but not limited to, single prices or any other individual items of data) in any form or for any purpose whatsoever except under valid licence from Argus. Further, your access to and use of data from exchanges may be subject to additional fees and/or execution of a separate agreement, whether directly with the exchanges or via Argus. Trademark notice ARGUS, ARGUS MEDIA,, the ARGUS logo, ARGUS Polymers, other ARGUS publication titles and ARGUS index names are trademarks of Argus Media Limited. Visit for more information. Disclaimer The data and other information published herein (the Data ) are provided on an as is basis. Argus and its licensors (including exchanges) make no warranties, express or implied, as to the accuracy, adequacy, timeliness, or completeness of the Data or fitness for any particular purpose. Argus and its licensors (including exchanges) shall not be liable for any loss, claims or damage arising from any party s reliance on the Data and disclaim any and all liability related to or arising out of use of the Data to the full extent permissible by law. Publisher Adrian Binks Chief executive Neil Bradford CEO Americas Euan Craik Global compliance officer Jeffrey Amos Commercial manager Karen Johnson Managing editor, Americas Jim Kennett Contact: Michelle Klump Tel: polymers@argusmedia.com Customer support and sales Technical queries technicalsupport@argusmedia.com All other queries support@argusmedia.com Houston, US Tel: New York. US Tel: Washington DC, US Tel: London, UK Tel: Astana, Kazakhstan Tel: Beijing Tel: Dubai Tel: Moscow, Russia Tel: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Tel: Singapore Tel: Tokyo, Japan Tel: Petrochemicals illuminating the markets