Fainted downstream demand continues to impact the market sentiments of Toluene Diisocyanate in China

The Chinese market has been witnessing a gradual fall in Toluene Diisocyanate's (TDI) market sentiments over the past few weeks, owing to weak demand from the downstream industries. TDI is an aromatic isocyanate, which majorly finds its usage in the Polyurethane-based industry. Polyurethane is primarily used to produce flexible foams in the automotive and furniture sectors. Besides, TDI is also used to manufacture paints, adhesives, elastomers, and rigid foams. In China, the offtake of Toluene Diisocyanate from all these end-user industries remained muted in the considered period, which caused its price value to fall.

Because of a sudden mandated lockdown in multiple Chinese cities due to another Covid-19 variant, market activity was hampered, resulting in a drop in the price of Toluene Diisocyanate. Furthermore, the country's restricted transportation and logistics drove down the price of Toluene Diisocyanate even further. Overall, there was little demand from the end-user sectors, and the current stockpiles were adequate to meet the need. As a result, Toluene Diisocyanate prices in the Chinese domestic market have decreased this week.

Moreover, the increased prices of Feedstock Toluene due to the continued hike in Gasoline and Benzene price in Shandong exacerbated the Toluene Diisocyanate prices in the country. The prices of Toluene Diisocyanate in China assembled at USD 3020/MT FOB Qingdao during the week ending on April 15, which was USD 3060/MT FOB Qingdao on April 1. The prices of Toluene Diisocyanate (TDI) dropped by 1.31% in about two weeks, highlighting the steady decrement in its prices. However, on the other hand, countries like India, the USA, and Germany have been witnessing an upsurge in the Toluene Diisocyanate, backed by solid demand from the end-user industries.

According to ChemAnalyst, "The Toluene Diisocyanate prices are expected to drop further in the Chinese domestic market as the cases of Covid are surging in the region and the market unpredictability is most likely to continue."