November import PP, PE prices announced with large decreases to Asia

Import PP and PE prices for November are being announced with significant decreases from the late October levels in China and Southeast Asia as poor demand, weaker spot ethylene and propylene costs and the uncertain economic environment have pushed sellers to lower prices to attract buying interest, as per ChemOrbis. Ongoing monetary tightening measures in China are also contributing to reduced buying activity in the Chinese market as many small and medium sized buyers complain facing increasing difficulty securing letters of credit from their banks. A Saudi Arabian producer announced initial November prices to China with decreases of US$110/ton for PP raffia, US$120/ton for homo-PP injection and HDPE film and US$140-150/ton for LLDPE film when compared with their most recent October prices. The same producer also announced November prices to Southeast Asia with similar decreases of US$130/ton for homo-PP injection and raffia, US$110/ton for LLDPE film and US$100/ton for HDPE film when compared with their most recent October price levels. The producer cited poor demand as the main reason for their price reductions. Additionally, the producer is not confident about the market outlook for the coming month. A South Korean producer stated that they managed to conclude some November deals to China for both homo-PP and PP block copolymer after conceding to price reductions of US$120/ton from October prices late last week. Sales are reported to have slowed down over the past few days as many buyers have once again retreated to the sidelines in anticipation of further price declines in the days ahead. Another South Korean producer announced November prices for PP block copolymer to China with decreases of US$110/ton from October late last week. The producer attributed this price reduction to softer spot propylene prices. At the start of this week, another South Korean producer announced November PP block copolymer prices with a reduction of US$70/ton when compared with their October sell ideas, adding that they managed to conclude some deals for small tonnages with regular customers at their new price levels. A Southeast Asian producer announced November prices to the region with decreases of US$110/ton for LDPE film, injection and coating, US$170/ton for homo-PP injection and US$120-140/ton for copolymer PP from October. Another Southeast Asian producer announced November prices to the region with decreases of US$80-100/ton for homo-PP, US$60-70/ton for HDPE film, US$60-80/ton for LDPE film and US$130/ton for LLDPE film when compared with October. Lackluster regional demand was cited as the main reason for these reductions, with one of the producers adding that they felt pressured to agree to large decreases for November in accordance with the significant declines witnessed in new November prices for Middle Eastern origins.