Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene Prices Expected to Stabilize in Asia as Acrylonitrile Supply Eases in the Region

The prices of Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS) polymer in Asia are expected to stabilize as the supply of Acrylonitrile eases in the region due to rise in the exports of Acrylonitrile from China. The prices of ABS had been quite volatile last year, and the prices skyrocketed to a high of $4409 per tonne in December 2020. 

Since then, the prices have been following a downward trajectory with the prices falling to $3758 per tonne in March 2021, which fell further to $3121 per tonne in June 2021. The prices have started to stabilize around $3120-$3140 levels in August-September since the supply in the Asian markets have started to ease due to increased exports of Acrylonitrile from China. 

China's Acrylonitrile exports from January to July this year have reached 127,200 tons, which is an increase of 186.63% compared with the same period last year. The factors behind the surge in exports include a sharp cut in overseas supply which began in February as a severe cold spell shut down or restricted production of several acrylonitrile units in the United States which is a large net exporter of Acrylonitrile. The other factor for rise in exports is the proposed capacity addition by Sielbon. 

Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS) is a thermoplastic copolymer containing Styrene, Butadiene, and Acrylonitrile. Products manufactured from ABS resin have properties such as colourability, dimensional stability, toughness, and temperature and scratch resistance. 

The major end use industries for ABS include automotive, construction, electronics, consumer goods and appliances. The demand of ABS is rising globally due to the rising demand of automotive industry as ABS is used in every area of automobile. The demand is also set to rise due to growth in the demand of other end use industries including construction and electronics etc. 

As per ChemAnalyst, “the increasing exports of Acrylonitrile from China are expected to stabilize the price trend in ABS further which had risen exponentially last year due to deep freeze in USA which had created a pressure on the global supplies. The prices are expected to maintain the $3120-$3140 level in the upcoming month also.”