Prime Virgin Polymer Prices are sourced from major polymer websites in China and quoted in Renminbi (RMB), including VAT, with an exchange rate of 1 US dollar equaling 7.1358 RMB
New York crude closed on Friday at $73.56 per barrel, easing ahead of the Christmas break on a possible output increase from Angola after leaving OPEC. The earlier rise from two weeks ago was attributed to positive US economic news and concerns about Houthi ship attacks that could boost supply costs.
PE, PP, PS, ABS, PET, and PVC Prime virgin material prices in China experienced fluctuations, with prices ranging by US $10 to US$40 per ton due to the “Red Sea” incident supporting feedstock costs. However, end-users’ resistance to higher prices resulted in low demand, and supply pressure led to a decline in prices. Despite China’s introduction of various economic stimulus measures, market players seem not to be responding positively to the government’s economic policies. A weak fundamental outlook poses resistance to price increases. With cautious buying behavior and traditional low economic activities, overall transactions remained limited. Polycarbonate in China exhibited weak and volatile performance, with downward pressure on prices resulting in negative market sentiment.
PMMA and nylon’s stable prices are supported by balanced supply, moderate feedstock costs, and relatively steady demands. Outlooks for prices lie in global economic situations, shipping costs, especially with the uncertainty of the latest geopolitical crisis in the Middle East, and production capacities.
Recycled materials in China are expected to continue at a low level for the coming weeks before the Chinese New Year holidays finish by the end of February. The market has been subdued as low prime prices compete with recycled materials, and persistent low demand both domestically and overseas. The latest increase in shipping rates due to the diversion of vessels routing around Cape of Good Hope, which takes extra time and costs, has led many shipping lines to increase their rates from $1,000 to $3,000 per container. Recycled material prices would not really drop as there is no room and no profit due to high feedstock costs and high processing costs. Recyclers are cutting their production because of a shortage of profitable scraps to keep their operations running at a reasonable capacity. Additionally, the recent cooling weather in China has also impacted the collection of scraps and the operations of downstream manufacturers. Generally, the recycled material market is poised for different trajectories. PVC, PE, ABS, PS, and PE are anticipated to persist in weak trends, high-level inventories, and low demands. Recycled PET is projected to stabilize due to export demands for environmental sustainability programs.
Scrap plastics supplies in Southeast Asian countries like Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, and Indonesia are still abundantly available as the US and other scrap-exporting countries have oversupplies of prime materials. The low prime prices end up increasing the use of prime resins, and there is less demand for both post-consumer waste like MRP (mixed rigid plastic and low-grade PE film) and labor-incentive mixed post-industry scraps (mixed runners, mixed purges). However, with increased shipping costs due to the Red Sea and Suez crisis, soon there would be a mismatch of prices again between what recyclers can afford to pay in Asia and what suppliers offer. European suppliers have already been pushing back shipments due to freight increases from $1,000 to $3,000. So far, no one really knows how and when the problem will be resolved. Additionally, the Malaysian government has announced a ban for a few shipping lines related to Israel entering Malaysia. This has further impacted the already complicated situation. The outlook of the recycling industry in Asia is unknown with uncertainty.