One Thing At A Time – US Polymer Premiums Have Mostly Dissipated, Contract Premiums Now In Focus

Daily Chemical Reaction

One Thing At A Time – US Polymer Premiums Have Mostly Dissipated, Contract Premiums Now In Focus

Key Points:

• As chemical product availability increased, US spot polymer premiums relative to Asia mostly dissipated in 2H22. Domestic contract premiums are likely the next to drop.
• We compare Singapore Naphtha levels to Brent Crude and USGC Ethane to US Natural Gas to illustrate a surplus of chemical feedstocks relative to demand in late 2022.
• We show recent movements in US Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) relative to Asia, following news of production volume drops abroad, and highlight global Benzene price trends.
• We flag news from Enviva, discuss the difference between sustainable versus low-carbon, as they are not the same, and note our positive view on clean-energy metals.
• We show the decline WoW in China-to-Europe freight rates, which led global container freight rates further lower, on average, toward 2017-2019 levels, and flag FedEx news.

See PDF below for all charts, tables and diagrams