Aromatics

The FOB Korea benzene market was firm until the middle of the week, bolstered by prices for delivery to the US and China. But in the China domestic market, benzene stocks were high and prices were curbed. The CFR Northeast Asia paraxylene market moved in a narrow range. The market was curbed by ample supply but the price spread with benchmark feedstock naphtha was shrinking. Therefore, there was little room for prices to rise or fall.

Olefins

The CFR Northeast Asia ethylene market increased slightly due to receding selling interest. Available cargoes from Japan were disappearing and talks could be conducted only on cargoes from Europe and the US. This week, a Korean petrochemical maker bought a cargo to be delivered in the second half of September via a tender. The price was reportedly at a premium of slightly lower than $20/mt to CFR Northeast Asia quotations.

The Asia propylene market rose slightly. In Northeast Asia, supply of imported cargoes was tight early in the week and market sentiment strengthened. But later in the week, supply of Chinese cargoes was seen to be ample and sentiment weakened. Overall, talks were thin. In Southeast Asia, negotiations on September delivery were finished and players deemed it too early to begin talks on October delivery.

The Asia butadiene market moved up. In Northeast Asia, supply remained tight and sellers adopted a bullish stance. On the other hand, many end-users finished buying September delivery but buyers that could not procure necessary cargoes had no choice but to bid up to sellers. Under this situation, deal levels rose further. In Southeast Asia, most makers had completed sales for September loading and showed no hurry to sell cargoes for October loading.