Bearish Buying Activities in China Induces Stability in Aromatic Prices

Aromatic prices reaches a stable state last week after seeing a drastic upward movement in the first week of March with the market witnessing a significant fall as a result of fluctuating crude oil prices and a decrease in the demand from the end-use industries. Moreover, trade activities have been hampered by the Russia-Ukraine conflict and China's lockdown owing to the resurgence in COVID cases.

Aromatic prices had increased in the first week as oil prices soared owing to the ongoing geopolitical tension. The upsurge in crude oil prices affected the prices of its derivatives such as Benzene and Toluene directly. Later the price of crude fell slightly on March 18th, leading to the stability in Aromatic prices by the end of the week.

Germany, France, Italy, and the UK are significant producers of aromatic chemicals in the European region and the largest exporter of its downstream products globally. As China is the leading buyer of downstream automobiles, paints, etc from Germany, COVID restrictions have impacted the export of these products drastically. While the restrictions continued in China, demand from the end-use industries dropped, and the aromatic prices started to stabilize.

Aromatic products which are referred to as BTX (Benzene, Toluene, and three Xylene isomers) are widely used in dyes, automobiles, and electronic devices. As per ChemAnalyst, “Aromatic price may rise as the demand from end-use industries such as packaging and PVC pipes are likely to rise. It is predicted that the soaring Crude oil prices in the coming weeks might also affect the price of Aromatics. Rail, road, and shipping freight may show hike due to the expected rise in crude prices.”