For the Quarter Ending March 2022
North America
In this quarter, the prices of Formaldehyde in the USA surged with strong Natural gas and crude oil prices. Surging tension between Russia and Ukraine kept the prices of Formaldehyde on the upper end in the domestic market. Feedstock Methanol prices surged and exports to European nations increased, creating a supply/demand gap, and resulting in a price hike. The surging demand from Building & Construction enterprises pressured the producers to meet the demand from the consumer’s end, which elevated the price. The need for Methanol-based fuel and energy values also surged this quarter, consequently increasing prices. In this quarter, the cost of Formaldehyde observed to be USD 410/ton CFR Louisiana towards the quarter end.
Asia Pacific
In Q1 2022, the price of Formaldehyde surged with increasing market sentiments and affecting production units in February due to Winter Olympics and the New year Lunar holiday in China. The prices were observed to be maxed out towards the end of the quarter with USD 267/ton FOB Shandong. Raw material Methanol prices also surged with strong cost support and purchasing sentiments from downstream sheet industries. However, in India, the prices slipped in the first half of the quarter and accelerated in the final half. Domestic players detailed limited purchasing appetite and few deals closed during the week because of suppressed purchasing ideas. It is heard that the market is liquidated, and there are very few purchasers. In India, the price of Formaldehyde towards the end of the quarter was USD 320/ton Ex-Depot Kolkata.
Europe
In this quarter, the price of Formaldehyde surged with rising tension between Russia and Ukraine. High Natural Gas costs affected production units of Formaldehyde resulted in such a trend. Increasing sanctions on Russia and creating a demand/supply gap kept Formaldehyde prices on the higher end. In terms of inventories, they were increased with squeezed profit among the downstream enterprises. Exports from the Netherlands to Germany and Belgium increased with a surge in freight and transportation cost. Spot Methanol prices surged, and traders tried to purchase the product in bulk with an increase in consumption from the consumer’s end. In this quarter, the cost of Formaldehyde in Germany towards the quarter end was USD 450/ton FD Hamburg.
For the Quarter Ending December 2021
North America
In Q4, the prices of Formaldehyde remined on the lower side when compared with Q2 and Q3. Feedstock Methanol prices also fell in US with the succeeding month of Q4 due to slow down in Industrial applications and fuel demand with increase in Omicron cases in December 2021. Formaldehyde production was reduced because of decline in automotive and housing sector. Imports to South America were declined amid sufficient supply and weak trading environment. The decline was accelerated by approaching New Year slowing the demand seasonally. US contract price of Methanol set by two largest producers Methanex and Southern Chemical for December had widened the gap between spot prices and contract prices.
Asia Pacific
In Asia Pacific, the prices of Formaldehyde were observed to be surging in October and followed by drop in remaining two months of Q4. The Formaldehyde prices in India in December were $315/ton Ex-Depot Kolkata. In the first half of Q4, rising natural gas prices contributed to the cost of feedstock Methanol, which led to a steep rise in downstream products prices including Methanol. In the second half of Q4, the fall in price trajectory was largely tied to eases in Methanol prices and ample imports arriving from China. Chinese domestic Formaldehyde inventories were reported to be higher on account of lower downstream consumption and muted offtake volumes. China’s Formaldehyde prices also hit its lowest in the last week of December with $203/ton spot Ex-Shangdao with eventually decline in the exports to Malaysia and South Korea.
Europe
In Q4, the prices of Formaldehyde slipped compared with Q2 and Q3 as the sufficient supply and deteriorating demand affected the prices in Germany, Belgium, and another European region. Deterred Methanol prices also accelerated the price of Formaldehyde to drop down. Demand of Formaldehyde in preservatives for food, paint and cosmetics declined due to weak trading activities and feeble demand among the consumers. The export of Formaldehyde to Asian market also declined toward the end of the Q4 due to oversupplies. Another factor that cools down the prices was the upcoming new year with conservative and soft demand.
For the Quarter Ending September 2021
North America
In the North American Region, the market price of Formaldehyde witnessed a significant rise in the third quarter of 2021. Tightness in the supply of upstream methanol in the region due to devastation caused by Hurricane Ida on the US Gulf Coast caused several Methanol producers to shut production which resulted in increased prices of Formaldehyde. Furthermore, volatility in energy feedstocks dented the production dynamics of Formaldehyde across the region. Recovering demand from downstream sectors increased the consumption of Formaldehyde during the 3rd quarter.
Asia
During the third quarter of 2021, the regional market of Formaldehyde showcased mixed sentiments across the Asia Pacific region. In India, prices have been rebounding since the first week of July, in the effect of a significant pickup in demand from the domestic market. However, increasing raw material prices also made a significant impact on the manufacturer's profit in the first half of Q3. Thus, the price climbed up and was assessed as USD 273/MT Ex- Vishakhapatnam as on 24th September. After continuous escalation in the price of Formaldehyde, a significant decline was observed during August, bolstered by declined raw material Methanol prices in the country. China and Korea reported better demand but high pricing environment due to high feedstock cost being translated into end-consumers.
Europe
The European market showcased a positive impact on the pricing trend of Formaldehyde in Q3 2021. The prices of upstream Methanol continued to impart volatility to the pricing of Formaldehyde during the third quarter. Extended tightness in the domestic market due to turnarounds at some production units kept the offers high in the region. In addition, demand from the downstream plywood and adhesives sector remained strong due to pick up in construction activities in Q3.
For the Quarter Ending June 2021
North America
North American market witnessed an overall decline in prices of Formaldehyde during this quarter, due to reduced demand from the end user segment. Initially, during April, prices rose due to shortage of feedstock Methanol in USA, which later improved effectively in May and June. Meanwhile, the demand remained low from downstream disinfectant segment in the country during this quarter, while the availability remained abundant that led to a decline in its prices. In the meantime, the demand from resin manufacturers remained modest to low in USA, and very less numbers of purchase orders were obtained by the manufacturers from the global market. Therefore, after reaching peak till the end of May, prices fell effectively and reached USD 540/MT in the last week of June in USA.
Asia
Asian marked witnessed frequent fluctuation in Formaldehyde values during this quarter, on back of fluctuation in demand from respective downstream sectors. In India, prices of Formaldehyde increased till May end due to expensive cargoes from Germany and USA, which later declined in June following the fall in feedstock prices in respective origin country. Most of the cargoes in India were received from Germany in this quarter followed by USA and UK. Therefore, prices of Formaldehyde revolved around USD 274/MT during last week of June in India. While in China, similar scenario was observed, where prices fluctuated frequently with fluctuations in demand from downstream sectors. Most of the demand came from industrial disinfectant segment.
Europe
Europe experienced modest demand for Formaldehyde during this quarter, where values of feedstock Methanol played an important role in price fluctuations across the region. Methanol prices remained high initially in the month of April, due to short supplies from major producers. In addition, the demand from derivative segment of Formaldehyde remained modest to low in the meantime, like Paraformaldehyde, Urea-formaldehyde resin and Phenol-formaldehyde resin, due to slow pace economic recovery.
For the Quarter Ending March 2020
Asia
In the Asian market, the demand for Formaldehyde remained firm from its derivatives sectors like plastics and resins initially, due to improvement in industrial activities across the region. During Q1 2021, supply for feedstock Methanol remained low due to several planned and unplanned turnaround in several companies in Middle East which ultimately supported its prices in the Asian market. In addition, Carbon Recycling International (CRI) announced the allocation of new CO2 to Methanol production unit in Anyang China, which will recycle 160,000 Tonnes of CO2 per year. This upcoming unit is expected to improve the feedstock Methanol availability in the country.
Europe
European Formaldehyde market improved in Q1 2021, the improved demand from downstream sector like resins, food and plastics enhanced the market sentiments across the region. In addition, Equinor’s major Methanol plant in Norway resumed its production after months of prolonged shutdown due to a fire hazard in December 2020. As this plant accounts more than 25% of total Methanol production in Europe and incurs a massive plant capacity of 900,000 MT/year, the shutdown impacted the production of Formaldehyde across the region in the first quarter of 2021. Following the resumption, supply crisis for Formaldehyde in Europe will considerably improve which will further slow down its price increment all over the Europe.
North America
US Formaldehyde market experienced shortage of supply during Q1 2021 due to significant shortage of feedstock Methanol across the region. Winter storm in gulf region sparked fire on the ongoing crisis of feedstock Methanol, which was previously started during Q4 2020 due to multiple hurricanes across the region. Major Methanol and Formaldehyde plants faced power outages across Texas, due to freezing weather conditions. In line with the substantial demand for feedstock Methanol for fuel, and insufficient supply, prices of Formaldehyde rose rapidly, but this price acceleration is anticipated to stabilize with the arrival of summers in the region.
For the Quarter Ending December 2020
Asia
During Q4 2020, China faced sharp recovery in feedstock Methanol market post the healthy revival from COVID-19 crisis. In expectations of tight Methanol supply from Iran during Q4 2020 in China, the prices of Methanol fluctuated in a range of 260-280 USD/MT in the end of November 2020. These shortages triggered sharp rise in the Formaldehyde pricing during the quarter. In India, Formaldehyde supplies remained disturbed due to the shutdown of some manufacturing plants in North India. These shutdowns occurred due to the issue of environmental clearances, allegedly many plants were running their operations without/expired environmental clearances. That resulted in shortage of supply of Formaldehyde in India and eventually led to increase in prices from USD 147.5 per tonne in September 2020 to USD 205.16 per tonne in December 2020.
Europe
Equinor, a major Methanol production company of Europe had fire broke out in a high-capacity Methanol production plant in Norway during December. This plant accounts more than 25% of the total Methanol production in Europe having a capacity of 900,000 tonnes/year. This shut down affected Formaldehyde production in Europe. Shortage of upstream products induced substantial hike in the prices of Formaldehyde and other derivative products.
North America
In the US Methanol market, the Methanol production remained low in effect of unplanned plant shutdowns in gulf, due to Hurricane Zeta in November. The fair global demand of methanol in winter season and shortage of supply led to an increase in its prices as well as the prices of its downstream product Formaldehyde. The downstream market was recovering and surging during final quarter 2020, especially in the Asian countries. So, the imports from USA also increased, though the production of Formaldehyde remained low to satisfy the demand.
