Spot propylene prices edge up across the globe

04-Jun-13

Spot propylene prices edged up across the globe this past week, as per ChemOrbis. Asian spot propylene prices were pushed up by supply concerns while spot prices in Europe and the US moved upward following the higher monthly contract prices for June. In Asia, supply concerns in Taiwan pushed up spot propylene prices on an FOB basis last week by US$10-20/ton. Formosa Petrochemical delayed the restart of its No 2 residue fluid catalytic cracker at Mailiao to the end of June due to extended maintenance work. The cracker, with a propylene capacity of 375,000 tpa, was shut in the middle of March. Formosa also lowered the operating rates of its three Mailiao crackers from 90% to 85% last week. The three naphtha-fed steam crackers, which have a combined propylene capacity of 1.46 mln tpa, are expected to run at reduced rates until the end of June. Spot propylene prices on an FD NWE basis climbed €20/ton (US$26/ton) week over week, tracking the higher June propylene settlements in Europe. The June propylene contracts settled with increases of €15/ton (US$19/ton) from May, pushed up by restocking activities as well as firmer upstream costs. Spot naphtha prices on a CIF NWE basis, which had opened May below the US$800/ton threshold, posted a total increase of US$50/ton during the month. According to ChemOrbis, US polymer-grade propylene contracts for June were announced with increases of 3 cents/lb (US$66/ton) from May after settling lower over the past three months. Spot deals on an FD USG basis were concluded at mostly stable levels in the first half of last week, but prices moved upward by 1-2 cents/lb (US$22-44/ton) later in the week. Ongoing cracker shutdowns were cited as the reason behind these higher levels. ExxonMobil shut its 989,000 tpa cracker in Baton Rouge, Louisiana following a compressor failure on May 22.