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PP prices climb in June

PP prices climb in June North American polypropylene resin prices reversed course in June, increasing 2 cents per pound. Prices for the material had dropped 2 cents in May and 10 cents in April. Those moves, as well as the June increase, matched price changes seen for polymer-grade propylene (PGP) monomer feedstock. Prior to the April-May price drops, regional PP prices had increased for three consecutive months and six times in the previous seven months. Combined with previous increases and decreases, regional PP prices now are flat so far in 2024. In a recent report, PP supplier Blue Clover of New York said PGP prices "continue to climb higher" in early July. Officials added that reasons for higher PGP prices include planned maintenance at a PDH process PGP unit operated by Enterprise Petrochemical in Baytown, Texas, as well as possible inventory restocking for hurricane season and better-than-expected demand for PGP derivatives such as PP resin. The Enterprise unit has annual production capacity of almost 1.7 billion pounds of PGP. Short-term PP supplies also could be affected by temporary shutdowns put in place by Formosa Plastics Corp. USA and other suppliers in advance of Hurricane Beryl, which made landfall July 8 in Matagorda, Texas. Tighter supplies could serve to keep PP prices flat or provide momentum for another price hike. Blue Clover officials also said they don't believe a 10-cent-per-pound premium for PGP compared with 2022-23 average pricing will hold. "While demand for PP is better than expected, PP producers have been operating at sub-80 percent in an attempt to match production to demand," they added. "Blue Clover believes the market for PP will get longer at some point over the summer, and that oversupply will push into reduced PGP demand," officials said. "PP days of supply on hand are relatively healthy compared to prior years … [but] it's not the easiest time of year to hold this view." * source : https://www.plasticsnews.com/resin-pricing/polypropylene-prices-reverse-course-rise-june

이명규 기자 2024-07-26

Australian government invests in new soft plastics recycling plant

Australian government invests in new soft plastics recycling plant Recycling Plastics Australia The Australian government announced a A$20 million) (US$13.5 million) investment in a new soft plastics mechanical recycling plant. Recycling Plastics Australia will build a plant with a capacity of 14,000 metric tons per year at its Kilburn headquarters in South Australia. Deploying technology from mechanical recycling specialist PreOne Australia, the plant is expected to recycle soft plastics such as shopping bags, chip packets, and food wrappers into new feedstock. The facility will require a total investment of A$40 million (US$27 million). The parties involved did not disclose when the plant is expected to start operations. The new investment follows the collapse of Australia’s soft plastics recycling program in 2022. Industry giants poured millions into REDcycle to collect material for recycling since 2010. In November 2022, it was revealed that the company was stockpiling soft plastics in several warehouses across Australia rather than directing them for recycling. The collapse of the scheme was partly blamed on lack of soft plastics recycling infrastructure. To address the issue, the Australian government introduced the Recycling Modernization Fund (RMF). It is investing A$250 million (US$168.8 million) in new and upgraded recycling infrastructure through the RMF, including the new facility in Kilburn. The Department for Climate Change, Energy, the Environment, and Water is also chairing a new Soft Plastics Taskforce, which has taken over responsibility for 11,000 tonnes of soft plastics previously managed by REDCycle. The scheme operates take-back programs in three major supermarkets: Woolworths, Coles, and Aldi. “I applaud the commonwealth for this significant investment which acknowledges both the need for this service, and the strength of South Australia’s existing resource recovery and recycling industry,” said Deputy Premier of South Australia, Susan Close. “Scaling up equipment and personnel to tackle the challenge of soft plastic recycling is the first step into rebuilding the infrastructure we need for an effective supermarket ‘take back’ scheme." Australia introduced national targets for packaging in 2018 in an industry-led scheme that does not impose penalties for failures. It requires 70 percent of plastic packaging to be recycled or composted by 2025. Australia will not reach the target, with only 18 percent of plastic packaging being recycled in 2023. Groups have called for the introduction of a plastic tax and Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme in response. The Australian government has also introduced new rules that will come into force this year, including a ban on all soft plastics shopping bags and single-use plastics including coffee cups from Sept. 1. The new laws also require packaging to be designed to be recovered, reused, recycled, and reprocessed safely in line with circular economy principles. * Source : https://www.plasticsnews.com/news/soft-plastics-recycling-plant-debut-australia

이명규 기자 2024-07-23

Recycled PET prices climb alongside summer temperatures

Recycled PET prices climb alongside summer temperatures Getty ImagesBales of green plastic bottles at a recycling facility. North American recycled PET pellets pricing is continuing to be affected by seasonal demand. Sources in contact with Plastics News say recycled PET prices have increased by an average of 2.5 cents per pound. Clear post-consumer PET pellet prices are up 3 cents per pound and green post-consumer pellets are up 2 cents. These price changes are shown on this week's Plastics News resin pricing chart. "With temperatures on average being elevated, folks are certainly consuming more cold beverages. With that comes an obvious increased demand," said a manufacturer in New Hampshire. "But at the same time, you have the same supply." Recycled PET prices have been on the rise throughout 2024 and in the second half of 2023. "I think with it just being a coming into an election year, and just a lot of uncertainty there, [we are] probably going to see, I'd say, stabilization or price [increases]. I don't see price going down," the source added. * Source : https://www.plasticsnews.com/resin-pricing/recycled-pet-prices-rise-seasonal-demand-heats

이명규 기자 2024-07-23

Detroit 3 fall behind international automakers in US vehicle production

Detroit 3 fall behind international automakers in US vehicle production International automakers produced 4.9 million light vehicles in 2023 compared with 4.6 million from the Detroit 3. Toyota Motor Corp. photoToyota is among the manufacturers contributing to international auto makers' producing more light vehicles in the U.S. than the Detroit 3 in 2023. International automakers produced more light vehicles in the U.S. than the Detroit 3 for the first time in 2023, according to a report from Autos Drive America and the American International Automobile Dealers Association released July 9. International automakers, including Toyota Motor Corp., Hyundai Motor Corp. and Volkswagen AG, produced 4.9 million light vehicles in 2023. The Detroit 3, in contrast, produced 4.6 million light vehicles during the same period, the groups said. The groups represent international automakers and dealers doing business in the U.S. The change underscores major transformations in automotive production as international automakers gain more prominence in the U.S. market. International automakers have increased U.S. production by 85 percent since 1998, while Detroit 3 production fell around 50 percent during the same period. "I think what the report shows is that (international auto makers) are invested, and they're going to continue to invest here in the U.S.," Jennifer Safavian, CEO of Autos Drive America, told Automotive News. "They are not going anywhere." U.S. electric vehicle manufacturers Tesla Inc., Rivian Automotive L.L.C. and Lucid Group Inc. produced 754,342 light vehicles in the U.S. in 2023, according to the report. * Source : https://www.plasticsnews.com/news/global-auto-makers-produce-more-vehicles-us-detroit-3

이명규 기자 2024-07-23

Diligence, knowledge key for injection molders in uncertain markets

Diligence, knowledge key for injection molders in uncertain markets Michael A. MarcotteLaurie Harbour, principal at consulting firm Wipfli, at the Plastics News Executive Forum 2024. During a soft automotive market, injection molders should be diligent in evaluating the true cost of product lines and rightsizing their businesses, experts say. With high interest rates, a tough economy and an upcoming U.S. presidential election, consumers are waiting to see if a new car purchase is "an investment they want to make right now," Laurie Harbour, principal at consulting firm Wipfli, told Plastics News. Although the auto market is "not bad, … OEMs are still making good money," Harbour said, but it's "a softer market than what we would have ever expected pre-COVID. We're not at the 17 million-unit mark, and I don't think we will be for many years to come, if at all." With consumer debt soaring and vehicle prices remaining high, consumers are waiting to see if the Federal Reserve Board lowers interest rates, and car dealership inventories are growing, she said. "I never thought we'd go back to During a soft automotive market, injection molders should be diligent in evaluating the true cost of product lines and rightsizing their businesses, experts say. With high interest rates, a tough economy and an upcoming U.S. presidential election, consumers are waiting to see if a new car purchase is "an investment they want to make right now," Laurie Harbour, principal at consulting firm Wipfli, told Plastics News. Although the auto market is "not bad, … OEMs are still making good money," Harbour said, but it's "a softer market than what we would have ever expected pre-COVID. We're not at the 17 million-unit mark, and I don't think we will be for many years to come, if at all." With consumer debt soaring and vehicle prices remaining high, consumers are waiting to see if the Federal Reserve Board lowers interest rates, and car dealership inventories are growing, she said. "I never thought we'd go back to these days of 100 days of inventory, but we have," Harbour said. "I thought COVID taught us some things. Prices have kind of leveled off, but incentives are growing at the dealer. … I think this softness will continue through the balance of the year." Market "softness," she added, is "creating a level of uncertainty" in the market. "It's still a better industry than some others, but [suppliers] have to be diligent." EV slowdown ‘gridlocks' supply chain Automakers have also "taken about a five-year slowdown on the implementation of electric vehicles," Harbour said. "It's related to the economy and the price of vehicles and the lack of infrastructure in place to charge these products," she said. The EV market is past the "apex of early adopters," she said. "Now we need things like cost to come down." OEMs have slowed launches of new vehicle products by 12-24 months, directly affecting suppliers already selected for those programs, Harbour said, adding that the supply chain is "gridlocked" as carmakers stall the release of data needed by suppliers to start up design and production of components. "All of the OEMs are stepping back and revisiting their strategies on BEV," Harbour said. "That makes them revisit their ICE strategy … [and hybrid vehicles] to get people more excited about electric vehicles. "[OEM] engineering may not be ready with the design of the product or all the necessary milestones … [while a molder] is sitting there with engineers ready to start designing and processing that component," she said. "A big molder has 10-20 programs going all at once. … If 50 percent of them are on hold or delayed in redesign … then they're not full. "Engineers are sitting there not able to capitalize on their capacity. Then [projects] all bottleneck … and then they release at the same time, those people can't manage everything," Harbour said. "It's chaos, internally. … Cadence is key." Stalled volumes force companies to ‘rightsize' Some Tier 1 suppliers have begun to lay off production workers because volumes have not grown at the expected pace, Harbour said. Amid the COVID pandemic, "companies kept people because it was so hard to find [skilled labor]." "In many cases, [larger Tier 1 companies are] publicly traded and more diverse … so they tend to have some ability to flex," she said. "But on a plant-by-plant level … it depends on what programs they're on. It's easier as a big company to kind of get fat in some production areas. … They're not all as healthy as they can be. If they haven't done all their rightsizing, they'll struggle too. "Some [injection molders] are proactively working to improve their business, and others are, frankly, not doing much of anything," Harbour said. "With volumes not returning to where we expected them and programs being start-and-stop, at some point you have to rightsize your business." Injection molders need to put "moderate" plans in place to catch overspending and reduce debt, general administration costs, including "everything from supplies to travel" and employees in finance, HR, and other selling, general and administrative expense functions, she said. "A good company should be doing that every month anyway. "At the end of the day, it's about the strength of their balance sheet and their ability to flex down and still make money," she said, adding that 25-35 percent of Tier 2 automotive suppliers are "struggling because they don't have clear balance sheets." Some injection molders are "not taking seriously what they need to do in today's environment," Harbour said. "We can't bury our head in the sand [and] … say, 'It's coming back; we'll be fine.' We need the data to tell us the story." Morgan ‘True cost" of manufacturing components Injection molders that can't manage to find the "true cost" of manufacturing their product mix will likely end up victims of the market's continued consolidation, Ted Morgan, partner at advisory firm Plante Moran, told PN in an interview. "There's this entrepreneurial spirit within the average custom injection molder, to say, 'We'll get the business and figure it out later,'" Morgan said. "This is a very hard industry. The stakes are very high to take those leaps of faith." That entrepreneurial spirit can cause injection molders to "underbid" the cost to make a product line, he added. "A growing number of plastics injection molders in automotive [have a] product mix [that] isn't where they need it to be," Morgan said. "It sounds so obvious, but injection molders have to know what it costs to make their parts. "With interest rates where they are and the cost of capital where it is … you can't afford to have low-margin business," he said. "The average injection molder under-costs high-complexity, low-volume products," like components for EVs, which are "a more difficult production rate to manage." The market slowdown on EV implementation is causing operational complexity for suppliers in the space, Morgan said, "unraveling" production schedules with unpredictable volumes. "If you're getting a call from [customers] every day [with] … revisions of a certain part … that volatility … the higher the level of complexity, the more expensive it is on your indirect labor," he said. "The total cost to make a product is well beyond the cost of the injection molding process. There's so much that happens before and after the molding that adds to your total cost." That total manufacturing cost of a component can also vary between customers, Morgan said. "This is not rocket science. But it comes down to being very mindful and understanding … [of] the cost to serve the customer," he said. Investment in automation, efficiency As automation becomes more affordable, plastic injection molders of any size have opportunities to integrate automation into their operations, he said, adding that suppliers are contemplating how much to invest in new equipment and still get a return amid high interest rates. "The No. 1 way" for suppliers to control costs is though evaluating labor, Morgan said. "The benefits of automation continue to grow. … The industry has been saying this for 25 years. "The carrot is definitely there to invest in newer equipment," he said. "[New injection molding presses are] more efficient and going to save money compared to older equipment. "Machine manufacturers are good about trying to drive more efficiency in the cost to run their machines," Morgan said. "There are efficiencies to be gained. … The challenge is they're really expensive, and interest rates are high. It has a big impact on [suppliers' ability to upgrade]. "The more things change, the more things stay the same. You have to be really good to make money as an injection molder." The firm is beginning to see a "trend of some distress in some challenged suppliers," Morgan said, which he expects to continue "at a reasonable pace" throughout the next five to 10 years. Tier 1 or stronger Tier 2 companies may need to "rescue" smaller companies experiencing most of the stress on the market through acquisition, he added. "The injection molders that will remain are going to be really strong. … But there will be [fewer] automotive molders in the future than there are today." * source : https://www.plasticsnews.com/news/top-injection-molders-ranking-injection-molders-uncertain-markets

이명규 기자 2024-06-24

Prices for European recycled resins drop across the board

Prices for European recycled resins drop across the boardNo sign of a demand pickup in sight Green rPET flake Europe's recycled resin producers managed to push through a price increase in May linked to higher raw material costs, but in June the short-lived price boost came to an end as a result of lower costs and weak demand. The recycled PET sector saw the largest price increases, but input costs increased at a faster rate in May, squeezing recyclers’ profit margins. Recycled PET clear flake prices increased by €40 per metric ton in May, clear food-grade pellet prices increased by €50 per tonne and with colored flake prices were up by just €10 per tonne for the month. But in June, recycled PET clear food-grade pellet prices have fallen by €30 per tonne with colored flake prices declining by €10 per tonne due largely to the lower cost of bottle scrap. Clear flake prices increased slightly. In May, few other recyclate classes registered a price upturn; with prices for most classes being rolled over. Recycled low density polyethylene natural film prices saw the biggest gains with prices up €40 per tonne. In most cases, the price rollovers and small price increases for all classes have been insufficient to cover the increased purchasing cost, and hence recyclers’ profit margins are squeezed further. In June, the prices for recycled LDPE, recycled polypropylene, recycled high impact polystyrene and recycled high density PE injection molding fell, with onlymblow molding grades of HDPE remaining unchanged over the previous month. While volume calls across all standard recyclate types have picked up slightly over the last two months, demand remains well below normal levels with no sign of a pickup in sight. Recyclers continue to run their plants at reduced rates to match the low level of demand. Recycled PET In May, R-PET clear food-grade pellet and clear flake prices increased by €40-50 per tonne because of an increase in the cost of bottle scarp and good seasonal demand. Colored flake prices were up by €5-10 per tonne with just a modest rise in colored bottle scrap costs. An increase in cheaper imports of recyclate from Asia meant that producers were mostly unable to pass through the cost increase in full. The upswing appears to be at an end, at least for the time being. In June, only clear flake prices have increased slightly, colored and food-grade pellet prices fell by €10 per tonne and €30 per tonne, respectively. Recyclers had to factor in a reduction of €35 per tonne for clear bottle scrap and a €20 per tonne reduction for colored bottle scrap. Beverage sector demand is running at normal levels, but may now have peaked for the summer season. Recycling plants continued to operate at normal levels. Recycled HDPE In May, recycled HDPE producers were largely unable to pass through the price increases they called for due to growing competition from low-priced imports of virgin material. Producers maintained production curbs but there was still sufficient material to meet contractual obligations. In June, blow molding prices were rolled over; injection molding grade prices fell by €10 per tonne. For the injection molding material, prices remain under pressure from lower costs and weak demand. Plants continued to operate at reduced rates. Volume calls by the construction and automotive sectors remained low. Recycled LDPE Recycled LDPE prices continued to gain ground in May with the price of natural film up by €40 per tonne and translucent film prices rising by €20 per tonne. These price rises just about covered an increase in the cost of scrap. There was more than sufficient material to cover demand despite ongoing production curbs. Volume calls remained at a low level. In June, prices fell as a result of lower costs and meager demand. Natural film prices were down by €25-30 per tonne with translucent film prices falling by €20 per tonne compared to the previous month. Recyclers adjusted output to the lower demand. There are few signs of a demand stimuli for the market. Recycled PP Prices nudged higher in May, rising by €10-20 per tonne on the back of higher raw material costs. Recyclers continued to produce just enough material to meet the low level of demand. The only positive demand push appeared to come from the horticulture market. In June, prices fell due to low demand and pressure from the falling cost of off-spec material. Recyclers maintained low plant operating rates with no sign of any end use stimuli to demand. Consequently, further downward price pressure is likely over the summer. Recycled PS In May, price movements showed a wide disparity; some recyclers offered a discount while others raised prices in line with higher purchase costs. On balance, black recycled pellet prices gained around €5-10 per tonne. Recyclers reduced their production rates in line with the low level of volume calls. In June, black pellet prices fell by €30 per tonne as a result of the lower cost of virgin material and very low demand. Prices are expected to remain under pressure with neither an upturn in virgin material prices nor improved demand in sight. * source : https://www.plasticsnews.com/news/prices-european-recycled-resins-drop-across-board

이명규 기자 2024-06-24

Pandemic spending fuels investments in intellectual property

Pandemic spending fuels investments in intellectual property Dassault Systemes In 2021, the American business sector did something it had never done before: It invested more money in intellectual property products than it did in equipment. This was not an anomaly caused by the pandemic, though it is likely the pandemic accelerated the arrival of this watershed moment. The gap in investment for these two categories had been steadily decreasing prior to the outbreak of COVID-19. Once the trends inverted, the subsequent gap expanded in 2022 and 2023. Now before I offer any opinions about how this will affect the plastics industry in the future, particularly the plastics machinery industry, I should explain what is meant by the terms intellectual property products and equipment. This shift in investment priorities will have far-reaching implications for the future of the U.S. economy, so it is important to have an idea about what these terms mean. Investment in intellectual property products consists primarily of spending for software and investments in research and development. It also includes investment in entertainment, literary and artistic originals, but this category is small compared to the other two. Investment in all of these categories is growing at robust rates. It strikes me that none of them represent a large end market for plastics products at the present time. There are likely to be niche opportunities, but that is about all I can see at the moment. Conversely, plastics products are an integral part of the equipment sector. On the graph I have charted the growth rates for investment in two of the major equipment categories: information processing equipment and industrial equipment. For comparison, I have also included a line for the growth in investment in intellectual property products. Amy Steinhauser Information processing equipment is by far the largest subcategory of equipment, and it includes not only computers and peripherals but also the communications, instruments, medical and office equipment segments. Industrial equipment is also a large segment of the overall equipment category, and it includes investment in plastics machinery. There are other large equipment subcategories, all of which are end markets for plastics products, which for the sake of simplicity I have chosen not to include on this chart. These include transportation, agriculture, construction, furniture and service industries equipment. Clearly, the equipment sector is large and important to the plastics industry. But my point is that total investment in equipment is garnering a diminishing share of the overall investment pie. Investment in industrial equipment, the category that includes plastics machinery, was actually down slightly in 2023 when compared with 2019 after adjusting for inflation. Another way of saying this is the trend in investment in industrial equipment for the last four years has been flat-to-down. By contrast, investment in intellectual property products has enjoyed average annual real growth of more than 7 percent during the past four years. Keep in mind that all of the data and trends I am talking about here are historical, but as we all know, past performance is not a guarantee of future results. The trends measure what happened both before and during the pandemic and also a couple of years after the pandemic. The outbreak of COVID-19 had an outsized effect on the data to be sure, but I suspect this may only be a blip in the data when compared with the future impact of artificial intelligence. After taking all of these factors into consideration, I offer this forecast for the trends in investment in equipment and intellectual property products over the next six to 18 months. Investment in artificial intelligence products will continue to ramp up, and this will catapult the growth curve for investment in intellectual property products back into an upward trajectory. The cyclical low for this curve will occur in the first half of 2024, and the graph will rise back up to the range of 7-8 percent by this year's end. The cyclical low points in this curve are occurring at a growth rate of around 5 percent, and I hesitate to offer any conjecture at what level the next cyclical peak will hit. If the AI boom is anything like the PC boom or the dot-com boom, then all of my forecasts will be too low. Suffice it to say 2025 will be another banner year for investment in this category. Investment in intellectual property will directly benefit investment in information processing equipment, so this curve is now past its cyclical low. By the end of 2024, this curve will rise back up to the 4-5 percent level. By next year, interest rates should be declining, so my outlook calls for a gain of 7-8 percent in investment in information processing equipment in 2025. My forecast for investment in industrial equipment is less optimistic. The AI boom will benefit some segments of the industrial equipment category, but it will likely hurt other segments. The long-term trend in industrial machinery will be an acceleration of the push toward products that are more efficient, more productive and more expensive. But with interest rates at the current levels, I do not see such a trend gaining traction this year. I would be happy to see the curve for investment in industrial equipment to get above the zero line in 2024, but I do not expect that to happen until we get a substantial decrease in interest rates in 2025. I will confess that my outlook is heavily influenced by the latest trends in the U.S. stock market, particularly the tech sector. In recent months investors have had a strong appetite for a very narrow list of stocks, and the gains in these few stocks have propelled the major indices to a steady string of all-time highs. This is largely attributed to expectations about the future of AI. I do not have any idea how high this trend will go or how much longer it will persist. I do know enough to pay attention to the clues and not to argue with the markets. I also know it is quite likely I will need to revise this forecast frequently. * source : https://www.plasticsnews.com/news/pandemic-spending-fuels-investments-intellectual-property

이명규 기자 2024-06-24

Why didn't resin prices change as expected in May?

Why didn't resin prices change as expected in May? Two commodity resins saw surprising price drops in North America in May, with conditions remaining calm for other commodity materials. The May price declines affected polypropylene and PET bottle resin, while prices for polyethylene, PVC and polystyrene were flat. PP resin prices dropped an average of 2 cents per pound in May, matching a price decrease for polymer-grade propylene (PGP) monomer feedstock. It was the second consecutive monthly price decline for PP, following a 10-cent drop in April. That April move also matched a PGP price drop. These back-to-back price declines for PP in North America reversed a trend that had seen prices increase for three consecutive months and six times in the previous seven months. Combined with previous increases and decreases, regional PP prices now are down a net of 2 cents so far in 2024. PP supplier Blue Clover of New York said demand for PGP derivatives such as PP is "stagnant as a result of lower consumer spending on goods in the economy." The firm expects contract PGP pricing to bottom out in June, be flat for July and then start to climb higher in August. New PP entry Heartland Polymers opened a new unit with annual PP production capacity of almost 1.1 billion pounds in Strathcona County, Alberta, in late 2022. At NPE2024, PP Sales and Marketing Director Yonas Kebede said Heartland will launch a grade of random copolymer PP resin for injection molding later this year. Heartland's unit making propylene monomer at a propane dehydrogenation (PDH) plant at the site went offline because of a mechanical issue in March but came back online in late May. That unit had launched in late 2022, providing on-site feedstock for North America's only integrated, single-site commercial PP production. In a recent report, Houston-based consulting firm C-MACC said that a drop of more than 3 percent in Brent crude oil prices since the end of May "suggests lower export prices and downward pressure on U.S. domestic propylene derivative prices … [as a result] limiting producer margin gain ambitions." Surprising PET moves North American PET bottle resin prices surprised some market watchers by dropping an average of 1 cent per pound in May. The price decline followed lower prices for raw materials, including paraxylene and purified terephthalic acid, according to an industry source contacted by Plastics News. PET demand, which typically increases in warmer months with higher consumption of bottled water and carbonated soft drinks, wasn't strong enough to negate lower raw material prices. Regional PET bottle resin prices had been flat in April after moving up a total of 5 cents in February and March. Prices for the material now are down a net of 1 cent so far in 2024. Although bottled water growth has slowed in recent years, PET and other plastics have gained in bottles for ready-to-drink tea, according to a report from Beverage Marketing Corp. Plastics accounted for just over 73 percent of tea bottles in 2019, but that number had increased to more than 85 percent by 2022. Flat elsewhere North American PE prices were flat in May after a lengthy battle to secure a 3-cent increase for April. Prices for the material had been flat for the previous two months and five of the previous six, with the exception of a 5-cent hike that took hold in January. Some market watchers expected the 3 cents won by suppliers in April to be given back to buyers in May, but PE makers were able to hold it for another month. An additional 3-cent hike that was on the table for May was unsuccessful. U.S. and Canadian PE sales for April were the highest in two years, according to the American Chemistry Council. But PE inventories in the region remained relatively high in spite of the sales boost. Exports of PE resin from the U.S. and Canada reached an all-time high of 45 percent of total production in 2023. The export rate is slightly higher than that record level so far in 2024. By comparison, exports accounted for 23-28 percent of North American PE production in 2015-18 and 33-39 percent of that amount in 2019-22. North American PVC prices were flat in May after moving up 1 cent in April. The April hike was the third consecutive monthly price increase for that material. PVC prices in the region had increased 2 cents in March and 3 cents in February. In February, domestic PVC sales surpassed 900 million pounds for the first time since August 2022. One market source said that recent PVC resin production "showed no signs of turnaround activity impacting supply as inventory increased." U.S. housing starts for April came in at an annual rate of 1.44 million, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. That number was down more than 3 percent vs. March and more than 2 percent vs. the same month in 2023. Construction activity accounts for about 60 percent of North American PVC demand. One market source told PN that U.S. and Canadian PVC production through April was up more than 10 percent vs. that same period in 2023. The source added that production in April was boosted by the completion of maintenance turnarounds at some production sites. PS prices also were flat in May, mirroring flat prices for benzene feedstock, which is used to make styrene monomer. PS prices also had been flat in April, in spite of a slight decrease in price for benzene. PS prices had been up a total of 9 cents in February and March after dropping a total of 9 cents from November 2023 to January 2024. Market sources said the temporary shutdown of a styrene plant operated by Ineos Styrolution in Sarnia, Ontario, shouldn't have much influence on PS prices, since PS and benzene already were oversupplied in the region. Ineos Styrolution plans to permanently close the plant in 2026. In feedstocks, regional prices for crude oil and natural gas moved in different directions in May. West Texas Intermediate oil prices opened the month at $81.90 but dipped 6 percent to $77 by the end of the month. From that point, prices have bounced back 6 percent to $81.50 in late trading June 19. Markets for natural gas — used as a feedstock to make PE and PVC — have seen recent surges, as warmer temperatures increase demand for electricity used in air conditioning. Prices for the material started April at $1.99 per million British thermal units but surged 30 percent to $2.59 by the end of the month. From that point, prices have continued to climb, closing at $2.91 on June 18 — up 12 percent for the month to that point. * source : https://www.plasticsnews.com/resin-pricing/why-didnt-resin-prices-change-expected-may

이명규 기자 2024-06-24