SunSirs: Styrene Fluctuated and Rose Last Week (August 4-8)

Price trend

According to the SunSirs’ commodity analysis system, the styrene market fluctuated upward last week, with an average price of 7,610 RMB/ton at the beginning of the week and an average price of 7,630 RMB/ton at the weekend, a weekly increase of 0.26%.

Analysis review

News: On August 7, international crude oil futures closed lower. The September contract for WTI crude oil futures settled at $63.88 per barrel, down $0.47, or 0.7%. The October contract for Brent crude oil futures settled at $66.43 per barrel, down $0.46, or 0.7%.

Cost: Benzene prices initially fell before rebounding last week. Overall supply contracted slightly, with both petroleum benzene and hydrogenated benzene decreasing, while demand failed to see a simultaneous improvement. The average price at the start of the week was 6,002 RMB/ton, and by the end of the week it averaged 6,122 RMB/ton, a 2.02% increase. The benzene market remained under ample supply, while weak fundamentals impacted its performance.

Supply and demand: Last week, a plant in Northeast China restarted, a new plant in Shandong began small-scale production, and some plants in East and South China adjusted their loads. Factory capacity utilization fell to 77.73%, a decrease of 1.19% month-over-month. On the demand side, downstream three-S production rates saw mixed increases, with high EPS inventories leading to a significant decline in production during the off-season. ABS and PS production saw slight increases, but overall demand was declining.

Styrene overseas market: On August 7, the closing price of the styrene market in Asia remained stable, at $885-890/ton FOB Korea and $895-900/ton CFR China.

Market outlook

The weak fundamentals of the styrene market remained stubbornly weak. With the restart of maintenance plants and the commissioning of new units expected in the near future, some downstream EPS/PS plants are operating at reduced capacity amidst industry profit compression. With no significant changes in the macroeconomic environment, the styrene market is expected to remain under pressure in the short term.

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