May European PS contract nominations sliding from €30-€50/tonne earlier in the month, as supplies lengthen and exports drop due to stronger euro, lower-priced imports
Liling Tan
LOS ANGELES
,
May 17, 2011
(Industry Intelligence)
–
General purpose polystyrene contract price nominations in Europe for May have fallen from the €30-€50 (US$43-$71) per tonne posted by producers at the start of the month, producers sources said on Monday, reported Platts on May 17.
Some producers have reduced their offers and one European PS producer went up by €20/tonne on some of its May contract settlements.
Another producer said May average contracts could end up at about €1,460/tonne free delivered, northwestern Europe.
With the May contract price for feedstock styrene settling at €1,276/tonne, up €35/tonne from April, European PS producers’ margins were expected to be about €15/tonne, reported Platts.
April PS inventories increased to about 25-26 days worth of supply from an average 15-16 days at the start of 2011, according to industry statistics cited by sources. The supply situation perplexed some market players given that demand remained healthy, Platts reported.
Another producer told Platts that a €30/tonne increase for May was his best-case scenario, and he projected less than €1,500/tonne net May contract prices.
The European PS market is also suffering from lower exports, partly due to a stronger euro, and from increased imports of lower-priced product from Asia to Europe, Platts reported.
The primary source of this article is Platts, New York, New York, on May 17, 2011.
* All content is copyrighted by Industry Intelligence, or the original respective author or source. You may not recirculate, redistrubte or publish the analysis and presentation included in the service without Industry Intelligence's prior written consent. Please review our terms of use.