China's Styrene market traded within a narrow band during July 2025, with prices showing minimal movement as traders adopted wait-and-see approaches amid conflicting market signals.
The month began with Styrene prices following previous week trends, as no major factors emerged to shift market dynamics significantly. By the second week of July, prices registered a marginal drop of 0.2% on CFR-Shanghai basis, though this small decline hardly reflected any dramatic shift in fundamentals.
Market participants reported steady procurement activities throughout July, even as high inventory levels from earlier periods continued weighing on sentiment. Downstream sectors including Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) and Styrene Acrylonitrile (SAN) maintained their regular buying patterns, though enthusiasm remained subdued.
Styrene production facilities across China kept running at normal rates during July, with industry sources noting only a few plant maintenance shutdowns. Domestic stockpiles stayed elevated due to earlier strong production runs and regular import flows. Some producers tried adjusting their operating schedules, but these moves barely affected the overall Styrene supply abundance.
The feedstock situation remained stable, with benzene costs showing little variation and offering neither significant cost relief nor upward price support. This stability in raw materials meant Styrene producers had limited reasons to push prices higher or lower based on input costs alone.
China's packaging industry maintained its steady performance through July, benefiting from continued e-commerce growth and food service demand. However, overcapacity issues, particularly in containerboard production, kept pricing pressures contained and limited feedstock inflation for Styrene. This situation contributed to reduced purchasing activity from packaging sector end users.
The automotive sector delivered its fifth straight month of sales growth, with June figures showing an impressive jump compared to the previous year. New energy vehicles accounted for more than half of all sales, which typically supports Styrene consumption. But intense price wars between manufacturers and shrinking profit margins made companies more cautious about material purchases.
By mid-July, Styrene quotations held steady, continuing a sideways trading pattern that had persisted for several months. The twelve-week average price remained relatively unchanged, suggesting the market had found a temporary equilibrium point.
Styrene imports from Korea and Middle Eastern suppliers proceeded despite port congestions, ensuring adequate raw material availability. Port inventories in eastern China stayed at manageable levels, while futures market activity helped align paper and physical pricing.
The final week of July brought another marginal decline of 0.5%, though this small movement fit within the overall range-bound Styrene trading environment that had characterized recent months.
Looking forward, industry observers expect Styrene prices to remain within current trading ranges, as stable raw material supplies continue balancing against inventory accumulation and transportation market uncertainties.
