Acetic acid prices saw sharp increases in China during the first week of December, attributable to increased tightness from producer side that drove prices up over 1.6% this week. China saw increases due to short supply caused by many producers delaying restarts of maintenance units or shutting down additional units resulting in decreased operating rates and lower spot availability and declining inventories held by many producers in China. As such, sellers were able to command a greater strengthening of their negotiating power to ask for higher prices for acetic acid in China despite generalised steady downstream demand primarily due to must-have reasons. Meanwhile, the US market was stable based on good imports and strong domestic production. Continued consumer buying for adhesive, packaging and solvent sectors showed strong seasonal seasonality; however, at year-end, inventory controls restricted spot buying. The US continued to operate effectively and produced little to no movement on prices due to well-functioning logistics and balanced supply and demand conditions within the market thus resulting in continued stable market conditions.
The acetic acid markets exhibited different trends in December's first full week for key regions. In China, acetic acid prices increased due to strength in the marketplace brought on by tighter supply conditions. In the US, prices were stable and unchanged as the supply to demand balance was maintained. These two trends pointed out many regional operational differences in operating rates, inventory levels and trade flows. Reduced inventories and a reduction in available spot volume boosted profitability for producers in China. The US, on the other hand, had a stable domestic production level along with regular opportunities to import acetic acid. As a result, acetic acid pricing remained stable in the country despite regular seasonal demand.
Supply-side conditions were the main driver of the situation in China. There were several production sites that had worked through their scheduled downtime and did not have operational plans in place for the near future, and some other production sites were in transition into long-term planned shutdowns, which resulted in lower operating capacity at these sites and a reduction in the volume of spot offers by producers. This drop in supply due to no or limited operating capacity has contributed to a significant decline in producer inventories and helped to maintain upward pressure on acetic acid pricing through increased confidence of sellers. The demand from downstream customers has been stable but not aggressive, as most of them were purchasing on a hand-to-mouth basis. While a large demand increase has not occurred, enough supply-side factors have kept acetic acid pricing at higher levels through the week.
In contrast, the US acetic acid market has remained largely unchanged. Sufficient Import volumes from Asia and stable domestic production levels have provided ample quantity for buyers to meet their contract volumes, therefore removing any burden on the distributor to procure additional volumes on the spot market. Through December, all major downstream consuming sectors including adhesives, packaging and variety solvents were consuming acetic acid at their normal early December levels, but spot market activity was restricted due to inventory management constraints at year-end. The complete streamlining of logistic operations to date, with no terminal disruptions, maintained this balancing act, thereby stabilizing acetic acid pricing throughout the overall US market.
The outlook for the future of acetic acid in the Chinese market appears optimistic. Soon, the Chinese acetic-acid industry should continue to have strong pricing support due to a lack of supply and inventories, as well as extended maintenance cycles or slow restart times on production facilities. Downstream customers will probably still be cautious in their purchasing habits, but the need to replenish could arise if acetic acid prices stabilize and trending higher. Therefore, acetic acid pricing in China is projected to increase approximately 1.6% per month unless there is a massive increase in the ability to supply the market.
In December, US acetic acid prices were forecasted to remain stable until the end of December. Comfortable stock levels, and steady import flows along with balanced downstream demand indicate limited price volatility. Market participants were tracking the following factors: Asian exporters' offers, US domestic storage levels, and maintenance plans for early 2026; however, without significant changes in the amounts of supplies coming into the US and changes in how much each US company is using, any future significant pricing movement is not likely. The first part of December shows a regionally separated acetic acid market of strength for China due to supply availability and an equilibrium for the United States.
