For the Quarter Ending March 2022
North America
Epoxy resin demand in the USA finally saw some shoots of recovery as spot trade volumes in Texas picked up the pace by the third week of January. General-purpose liquid epoxy resin demand in the US remained strong during February amidst high consumption for filament winding, electrical laminates, and encapsulation applications. Solid Epoxy market has been buoyant since the beginning of 2022 in the USA. Epoxy Resin prices surged in North America with prices ranging between USD 6341/ton-USD 6777/ton Epoxy Resin Semi-Solid in the USA in March. Epoxy Resin prices are expected to remain in upswing in the coming quarter as well under the expectations of consistent demand from end-use segments.
Asia Pacific
Epoxy contracts for February were deemed higher by 9.3% in Q1 2022 than the last quarter by domestic manufacturers considering higher upstream cost pressure. Epoxy Resin prices were observed at USD 3700/ton Epoxy Resin for Semi-Solid grade in China in February whereas in India Epoxy Resin prices remained volatile in the same month. Supply tightness and lower inventories levels continued till the end of the quarter due to which as raw material costs faced upward pressure in late March. The Asian epoxy market witnessed an increase in demand from the end-user industries such as construction as both public and private investments in infrastructure increased in China and India.
Europe
In Europe, Epoxy Resin prices were assessed at USD 5370/ton, with an overall increase of 1.9% in Q1 2022 in Germany. The freight charges also surged as soon as the war began between Russia and Ukraine, which affected the revenues in Germany as it exports around 10.2% of the world's total Epoxy Resin export to Asian and European countries. A steep hike in raw material costs on the back of the exorbitant surge in natural gas prices remained a significant factor that shifted the market dynamics of major European economies like Germany. In addition, rise in the prices of Bisphenol A and Ethylene Chloride (ECH) in the international market also aided the pricing trend of Epoxy Resin in the region.
For the Quarter Ending December 2021
North America
North American Epoxy Resin prices in Q4 had been on the higher end compared to the prices in Q3 of FY21. The prices of Liquid, Solid and Semi-solid resins were assessed 15%, 10% and 12% higher on an average compared to the prices in Q3 of FY21 on a DEL Texas basis. The prices of critical raw material epichlorohydrin had registered a similar trend in consonance with the quarterly trend of Epoxy resin. Production recovered to normalcy after the hurricane season only by late October and mid-November as supply of raw materials was tight during the first half of Q4. The quarter ending December also saw a structural change in the Epoxy market dynamics with Hexion announcing sale of its Epoxy business to Westlake which could have an impact on the North American and European Epoxy Markets with prices expected to quote lower than the previously forecast prices for Q1 of FY22.
Asia
The Asian epoxy market witnessed an increase in demand from the end user industries such as construction as both public and private investment in Infrastructure increased in China and India. The quarterly average prices for the liquid, solid and semi-solid epoxy resins had seen an increase of 8.5%, 11% and 12% respectively in China from the Q3 averages when assessed on an FOB Huangshan basis. The percentage increase for the corresponding grades of epoxy in India was 1.7%, 2.7% and 1.9% respectively when assessed on an Ex-location (Mumbai) basis.
The outlook for Q1 of FY22 looks bullish as the prices of upstream propylene in USD/mt terms went up significantly higher in North-East Asia and South Asia and which could impact the prices down the value chain including critical epoxy raw materials like Epichlorohydrin and Bisphenol in the coming weeks.
Europe
European epoxy market too witnessed a similar trend to that of Asia and North America as demand was considerably higher during the quarter ending December FY21. The prices of epoxy too were on an average assessed higher with percentage increases of 14%, 8.3% and 10.3% for the liquid, Semi-solid and solid epoxy resin respectively. Supplies of Epichlorohydrin were pricier and in lower quantities in the domestic market and supplies from North America and Asia too were costly thus choking production. The average prices for liquid, solid and semi-solid resin for Q4 assessed on an FD Hamburg basis stood at 3685 USD/mt, 3270 USD/mt and 3070 USD/mt respectively.
Prices are expected to be higher for Q1 of FY22 but could be on the lower end of the earlier forecast prices as demand in January and perhaps February could be affected by the rising number of Omicron cases across Europe.
For the Quarter Ending September 2021
North America
In the third quarter of 2021, Epoxy Resin market in North America experienced an upward rally backed by the constant growth in the values of feedstocks Bisphenol A and Epichlorohydrin along with the sturdy demand from the downstream paints and coatings sector. Additionally, in the mid of the quarter, severe climate calamity in the Gulf Coast of the US led to the curtailment in the production rates and disrupted the supply chains which consequently fumed the prices of Epoxy Resin in this timeframe. Expected growth in the construction sector is likely to surge the demand for Epoxy Resin in the upcoming quarter in the region.
Asia
In Q3 of 2021, an exponential rise in the prices of Epoxy Resin was witnessed in the Asian markets backed by the spike in the feedstock prices amidst the strong demand from the downstream industries. After the rebound in the industrial as well as commercial activities, the demand for Epoxy resins was fueled from the adhesives and coatings segment. In India, a steep climb in the prices of Epoxy Resin was witnessed in this quarter supported by the hike in the feedstock Bisphenol A prices. Moreover, extreme freight charges and limited availability of shipping containers further sent ripples to the prices of Epoxy Resin in the region. Thus, Ex- Mumbai prices of liquid Epoxy Resin were accessed at USD 5405.35/MT in September showcasing an increment by USD 278/MT since July 2021.
Europe
In Europe, Epoxy Resin market outlook appeared to be bullish with robust demand from the downstream sectors and tight fundamentals in the Q3 of 2021. In addition, surge in the prices of Bisphenol A, in the international market also aided the pricing trend of Epoxy Resin in the region. Moreover, exorbitant freight charges across the Europe-US and Europe-Asia interoceanic trade-routes and critical shortage of shipping containers further pushed up the prices of Epoxy Resin and its derivatives throughout the quarter in Europe.
For the Quarter Ending June 2021
North America
Disruptive weather condition during mid-February, forced several plants to induce a major turnaround, which curtailed the production activities and led to shortage of feedstock chemicals in the previous quarter. However, the production activities reached normalcy during the second half of Q2 2021, but prices remained high due to limited availability to satisfy the overall demand. Feedstock Bisphenol A prices traced upward trajectory due to high shortage, which reduced the availability of Epoxy Resin and eventually led to hike in its prices in USA. Therefore, prices of Epoxy Resin, were accessed at USD 4610/MT during mid of June in USA.
Asia
Hike in feedstock Bisphenol A prices affected the prices of Epoxy Resin in APAC market during this quarter. In China, prices of Epoxy Resin kept tracing upward trajectory due to sturdy demand from downstream segment, as the economic activities were consistently picking up pace after recovering from pandemic. While in India, second wave of pandemic declined the demand for Epoxy Resin in the country, but prices-maintained stability throughout the quarter due to the international cost pressure. Thus, prices of liquid Epoxy Resin were accessed at USD 2742/MT in India during mid-May 2021.
Europe
Consistent increment in prices of Bisphenol A, pushed up the prices of downstream derivatives across European region during Q2 2021. Decline in pandemic cases in some major countries of Europe, slightly increased the demand for Epoxy Resin during this quarter. However, the hike in prices of Epoxy Resin was primarily supported by huge rise in prices of Bisphenol A in the global market. In addition, increasing freight and production cost also influenced this global price hike in Bisphenol A and Epoxy Resin.
For the Quarter Ending March 2021
North America
Epoxy Resins market in North America experienced firm demand amid critical supply of feedstock Bisphenol A during this timeframe. According to an estimation, more than 58% of Epoxy Resins production remained offline either by disruption from winter freeze or due to the shortage of feedstock chemicals. Several plants remained idled that reduced the supply across the region, like Olin declared force majeure on its freeport Texas plant due to unfavourable weather conditions. All these conditions contributed to push up the prices during this quarter.
Asia
The Asian market encountered shortage of key feedstock chemicals due to lower domestic output and firm demand from downstream sectors. Domestic demand for Epoxy Resin remained strong amidst shortage of upstream chemicals, which supported its prices as well. The domestic supply remained consistently low due to lower imports from Europe and USA. Prolonged shutdown of Kukdo chemical plant in China also affected the supply across the region. In India liquid Epoxy price rose from USD 2287 per MT (January 2021) to USD 2580.55 per MT (March 2021), while in China prices rose from FOB USD 3500 per MT (January 2021) to USD 3773 per MT (March 2021).
Europe
Europe faced huge increment in prices of Epoxy Resins due to lower feedstock, Bisphenol A availability across the region. The prices of Epoxy Resins across the region rose by more than 55% quarter over quarter due to significant rise in feedstock chemicals. Another reason behind this hike was freight prices which recorded consistent hike and reached 4 times the prices in Q4 2020.
For the Quarter Ending September 2020
Asia
Epoxy Resin supply in the Asian countries remained tight due to some planned and unplanned outages in some production units. Increase in demand as several downstream units resumed construction projects after a considerable lift in lockdown restrictions paved the way for better producer’s margins. The price of Epoxy Resin showed a declined trend in September and was assessed to be USD 2640 per tonne This decline in price is attributed to soften in demand from construction sector and paints & coatings industries across the Asian countries.
Europe
Epoxy Resin production in the region remained stable during Q3 owing to normalized operations by manufacturers across the region. Sturdy demand for Epoxy Resins from various end-user industries during Q3, buoyed by better construction and auto activity bolstered the market sentiments. Also, the overall production remained sufficient to meet the regional demand despite disruption in import volumes in Q3. Spolchemie A.S., one of the leading manufacturers of Epoxy Resin in Czech Republic announced shut down of its production plants in Q3 with delayed resumption of one of its unit.
North America
The North American Epoxy Resin market witnessed stable supply during Q3 on account of usual imports from the Asian countries. Ample supply has impacted the overall product prices which eased on account of low-priced imports from the countries like China. The US Epoxy resin price were settled around USD 3011 per tonne during the quarter ending September. Downstream automotive and construction segments showed quick revival from the pressured dynamics but slowed demand from the aerospace still bothered some regional producers who preferred to maintain a wait-and-see stance.
