US MEK Market Remains Soft as Buyers Maintain Cautious Procurement

Import availability remained comfortable, with regular vessel arrivals from Asia and Europe supporting prompt requirements. Suppliers continued offering competitive MEK as production remained broadly sufficient across major exporting regions. The availability of imported cargoes reduced purchasing urgency among US buyers and kept competition between overseas suppliers active.

MEK supply conditions were temporarily affected by maintenance at several MEK plants in Asia during early August. Idemitsu Kosan Co. Ltd., Hubei Xianlin Chemical Co., Ltd., and CNPC Lanzhou Chemical entered maintenance during the period, but the facilities resumed operations following mid-August. The return of these MEK plants helped restore regional availability and limited the possibility of sustained supply tightness.

Sec-butanol prices remained stable amid adequate availability in few overseas market, allowing European producers to maintain competitive export offers. Easing crude-oil prices following the OPEC+ decision to increase crude production by ***,*** barrels per day in...