German Ethoxylates Prices Endure Bearish Trend Despite Surfactant Industry Innovations and Upstream Cost Increases

Hamburg, Germany: Reduced demand from the downstream Personal Care sector has been eroding market sentiment for key raw materials like Ethoxylates. With lower consumption observed in the terminal market, the German Ethoxylates market has seen prices decline. Despite dropping inflationary pressures, the purchasing sentiments of Ethoxylates end-use industries have remained under pressure,  weighing on the market fundamentals of Ethoxylates among the manufacturers. In addition, different innovative approaches and further plants to boost the capabilities of raw materials are also unable to boost the Ethoxylates market.

With the fragile economic conditions across the major economies of Europe, surfactants' market performance has been sluggish. The ChemAnalyst database has shown that the prices of Ethoxylates have demonstrated a decline of USD 40 per ton in the week ending 13th October. The market players have reported fewer transactions from the downstream personal care industries. On the upstream front, the prices of upstream Ethylene Oxide have been rising amidst the rise in energy costs. However, it has caused a minimal impact on the prices of Ethoxylated as the weak demand fundamentals dominated the Surfactant market.

One of the chemical giants of Ethoxylates in Germany, Dow, is launching EcoSense™ 2470 Surfactant, which offers customers a sustainable approach to achieving their formulation objectives in the household care market through the use of advanced carbon capture technology. Created in partnership with LanzaTech Global, Inc., a company specializing in converting carbon waste into eco-friendly raw materials, this surfactant supports the concept of a circular carbon economy while maintaining performance standards. The initiative to develop new products is strengthening the market aspects of several surfactant raw materials in the market, including Ethoxylates.

In addition, as per the market sources, one of the leading Chemical manufacturers in Europe, BASF, has boosted its production potential for Ethylene Oxide and its by-products at its integrated complex in Antwerp, Belgium. This strategic investment enhances BASF's annual output capacity by around 400,000 metric tons for these corresponding products. Apart from ethylene oxide, the expansion encompasses increased capabilities for Alkoxylates, which are ethylene oxide-derived compounds applied in diverse sectors such as detergent automotive and construction industries.

According to the pricing intelligence of ChemAnalyst, despite innovative projects, Ethoxylate prices will continue to experience a downward trend in the German domestic market. The reduced demand from the downstream Personal Care sector is expected to be the primary factor influencing the negative Ethoxylates market sentiment. However, the rising energy prices amid the winter season supply concerns will also attempt to cause upward pressure on the price realizations of Ethoxylates in the forthcoming weeks.