Seasonality continues to dim November PET outlook in Europe
Petrotahlil :Europe’s PET market is ending October on a mostly steady path after initial hike attempts proved to be unworkable. Players have been expressing their November expectations on a steady to softer tone so far.
Modest increases were trimmed in October
At the beginning of the month, regional PET suppliers sought small increases, counting on €26/ton higher MEG contract settlement for October. Nonetheless, the resistance built on the side of converters amid slowing end product demand forced PET sellers to concede to rollovers in most cases shortly after. Not only unsupportive demand but also lower PX settlements hindered firmer price intentions.
Consequently, spot PET deals continued to hover at around 3-year low both in Italy and Northwest Europe as the month wore on.
Muted demand leads steady to soft expectations for November
Activity in the region’s PET markets is not likely to improve much heading to the year-end, as most players concur.
Distributors in Italy confirmed selling their October volumes with rollovers after increases of €10-20/ton did not grab interest. “There are aggressive offers in the market, which may make it hard for some sellers to sustain their price levels. We expect a steady to soft sentiment to pervade the PET market until the year ends with minor changes ahead for the short term,” one of them marked.
A packaging converter in Germany opined, “We expect to see small discounts next month based on the low season for various applications. Our end business has not been brisk since October started and we skipped purchasing raw material in the recent weeks.”
A food packager in Italy noted, “We already received €10/ton lower prices by late October. Yet, we did not evaluate these offers due to our sufficient stocks. The market may see rollovers to slight drops in November so long as activity stays weak.”
Eyes turned to pending outcomes of MEG, PX contracts
Players will be monitoring the feedstock markets in order to make clearer predictions for November, meanwhile. Spot PX prices on an FOB NWE basis were slightly down by around $15/ton from early October to recently hover at more than a 2-year low, according to data from ChemOrbis Prize Wizard. A seller commented, “We hope to see a small drop in next PX contracts in order to offset our margins.”
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