Monochloroacetic Acid Prices Show Mixed Sentiments Across the Global Market

Since the beginning of October 2022, prices of Monochloroacetic Acid have shown mixed sentiments in the Global market due to fluctuations in raw material prices. The broadening inflationary pressure, the economic slowdown in China, and the ongoing supply disruption have further impacted global Monochloroacetic Acid prices.

According to the data, prices of Monochloroacetic Acid have plunged by 2.8% and 2.6% in the German and Belgium market, respectively, supported by the weak feedstock Acetic acid and Acetic anhydride prices. Additionally, demand from the downstream agrochemical and allied industries have declined as consumer sentiments continue to remain sluggish in the European market. In terms of domestic production, operating rates remained under check as energy prices continued to climb higher. However, imports from the USA and Asia faced port congestion in key major trading ports of Rotterdam, Amsterdam, and Antwerp. Meanwhile, Germany continues to face labor unrest, and logistics issues remain under pressure. As per the latest Container Trades Statics data, Europe’s containerized imports from China, its largest trading partner, are down almost 6% from January through August. Also, the port statement said, “container is still not rotating sufficiently due to congestion, and this is resulting in the throughput of full containers falling, while that of empty containers is rising’’. “Although operational challenges are slowly diminishing, still heavily disrupted container liner shipping is not forecast to return to normal until the first quarter of 2022.”

However, in the USA market, Monochloroacetic Acid prices have raised around 2.0% during October 2022 due to the high raw material Acetic acid and Acetic anhydride prices. Although, demand from the downstream agrochemical, dyes, and other value chains has stable to weak amid high inflation rates. On the other side, the USA has recently been experiencing barge traffic at Mississippi and Ohio rivers due to the continuing drought conditions. The water level on the Ohio and Mississippi rivers has been touching record lows, resulting in barge traffic and vessel berth delays. The low water level of these rivers halts the shipments from and to the USA, causing supply chain disruption for Monochloroacetic Acid in the region.

Similarly, in the Chinese market, escalated raw material prices have led to the high production cost of Monochloroacetic acid. Still, the demand from the domestic and overseas markets has been sluggish. Hence, as a result, prices of Monochloroacetic acid FOB Qingdao were assessed at USD 595/MT on 14th October 2022

According to ChemAnalyst estimation, Monochloroacetic Acid prices will drop globally due to weak demand from the downstream industries. Furthermore, low feedstock Acetic acid and Acetic anhydride prices may further impact the Monochloroacetic acid prices in the upcoming weeks.”