Tepid Market Sentiments Toward Polypropylene Slow Price Trend in US
- 27-May-2022 2:56 PM
- Journalist: Timothy Greene
If we observe the Polypropylene (PP) market in the USA by this week, muted fundamentals slowed the price trend. Weak demand and bearish energy values deterred the cost of feedstock propylene in the regional market. When ChemAnalyst tracked the downstream market of Polypropylene, it was observed that the housewares and automotive sectors show a crack in demand due to oversupplies of PP in the region and utilization of existing inventories.
With the week ending on May 27th, the prices of Polypropylene in the USA oscillated at USD 2305/ton (PP Copolymer Injection grade) FOB Texas. Our trusted source in Canada confirmed that "Additional production capacities of Polypropylene will come into existence in June from Inter Pipeline’s Heartland facility, which will add another 525KTPA and costs will slow down.”
Despite rail congestion and all the potential issues with high transportation costs, product availability was not affected, and the traders were expecting the price to slip further. Polypropylene (PP) imports from Asia continued to decline due to ample supply. Local producers of PP had also revised the prices according to the market sentiments.
Upstream natural gas prices have been relatively stable in recent days, which has remained one of the major factors influencing Polypropylene (PP) price fluctuations. Regarding demand and supply dynamics, the market remained tepid with stable purchasing among the traders. Downstream plastic and packaging industries are heard to operate stably with cautiously operating ventures and according to the consumer’s requirements.
According to ChemAnalyst, the price of Polypropylene (PP) will slip in the forecast period with the utilization of existing inventories. Fluctuations in Natural Gas and crude oil market will directly affect the prices. However, logistics constraints and healthy trading activities will keep the market intact. It is expected that sluggish purchases coupled with the expectation of weak sentiments will drive down prices.
