The US HCl price increased by x.xxx, bolstered by tight supplies and scarce inventories during the year-end. HCl prices were sustained by tight availability even though the cost underpinning from feedstock Liquid Chlorine was still not adequate due to stable prices during the period. Demand for HCl was not aggressive, as offtake from the downstream steel market remained insufficient. In December xxxx itself, production levels saw slight week-over-week declines as the month progressed. However, U.S. crude steel production increased year on year during the week ended December xx, xxxx, according to the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) data, counting as minor support to overall HCl usage.
In Europe, HCl was trending upward and rose in the German market by x.xxx. Tight supply of HCl came to the forefront as the biggest influence, associated with diminished chlor-alkali output. Eurochlor reports that European chlor production reached...
