Aromatics

Benzene prices on an FOB Korea basis and paraxylene (PX) prices on a CFR Northeast Asia basis increased sharply in the second half of the week due to a rise in crude prices caused by US' economic sanctions against Russia. Since paraxylene (PX) prices were bearish recently, there were movements to consume mixed xylene as a gasoline component. This was also a bullish factor.

Gasoline Component

MTBE prices on an FOB China basis softened due to sluggish demand. Buying inquiries from Europe and Southeast Asia were scarce. The gap between selling ideas and buying ideas was wide.

Olefins

Ethylene prices on a CFR Northeast Asia basis softened due to a fall in feedstock costs and weak demand. In addition, a decrease in China domestic prices weighed on the market. Since two new ethylene facilities were scheduled to start up in China by the end of the year, supply might be more ample. Under this situation, many end-users were not in a rush to buy.

In the Asia propylene market, CFR Northeast Asia prices were bearish due to sluggish demand.

In the CFR Northeast Asia market, buying interest from Chinese end-users for imported cargoes receded since supply for domestic cargoes in China was ample. For this reason, CFR Northeast Asia prices were bearish.

In the Southeast Asia market, Taiwanese cargoes flowed in, and perceptions of tight supply eased. In addition, PRefChem's naphtha cracker in Malaysia restarted. Supply might recover going forward.

Butadiene prices in Asia fell further. Demand was low while available cargoes from regions outside Asia such as Europe and the US were still observed. Therefore, supply was seen to be in surplus. In trade on a CFR China basis, Asian cargoes were reportedly traded at $950/mt and $960/mt.

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