Daily Chemical Reaction
Walk Em Down – Chemical Sector Profit Headwinds Continue Rise, Chemours Steps Its Profit View Lower
Key Points:
- Global commodity chemical prices have declined during the past three months, but demand concerns outweigh the benefits of cost relief for most derivative producers.
- We highlight the significant working capital issues facing many European utilities and flag recent movements in European natural gas and power prices relative to US levels.
- Chemours cuts its profit guidance for 2022 below street estimates, adding itself to a growing list of producers expecting lower 2H22 profit – we foresee more cuts ahead.
- We discuss the rising arguments for and against ESG investing, establishing a Midwest US hydrogen hub, and the risk of over-relying on renewables in most forecasts.
- US mortgage rates have climbed to their highest level since 2008 this week, and the USD has strengthened to roughly a 10yr high relative to major foreign currencies.
See PDF below for all charts, tables and diagrams