Trinseo raises August PS, ABS and SAN prices in Europe

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Trinseo, a global materials company and manufacturer of plastics, latex binders, and synthetic rubber, and its affiliate companies in Europe, have announced a price increase for all polystyrene (PS), acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) and acrylonitrile-styrene copolymer (SAN) in Europe, according to the company's press release as of August 3.

Effective August 1, 2021, or as existing contract terms allow, the contract and spot prices for the products listed below rose, as follows:

- STYRON general purpose polystyrene grades (GPPS) -- by EUR45 per metric ton;
- STYRON and STYRON A-Tech and STYRON X- Tech and STYRON C- Tech high impact polystyrene grades (HIPS) - by EUR60 per metric ton;
- MAGNUM ABS resins - by EUR130 per metric ton;
- TYRIL SAN resins - by EUR90 per metric ton.

As MRC reported earlier, Trinseo reduced its prices for PS grades on July 1, 2021, as stated below:

- STYRON GPPS -- by EUR190 per metric ton;
- STYRON and STYRON A-Tech and STYRON X- Tech and STYRON C- Tech HIPS - by EUR170 per metric ton.

According to ICIS-MRC Price report, Russian market players expected August prices for Nizhnekamskneftekhim's material to be announced last week. By the end of last week, Nizhnekamskneftekhim reported a reduction of Rb5,000/tonne in its next month's PS prices, said several major market players.

Trinseo is a global materials company and manufacturer of plastics, latex and rubber. Trinseo's technology is used by customers in industries such as home appliances, automotive, building & construction, carpet, consumer electronics, consumer goods, electrical & lighting, medical, packaging, paper & paperboard, rubber goods and tires. Formerly known as Styron, Trinseo completed its renaming process in 1Q 2015. Trinseo had approximately USD3.0 billion in net sales in 2020, with 17 manufacturing sites around the world, and approximately 2,600 employees.
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1. Phillips 66 posts first profit in a year on rebound of fuel demand due to easing of pandemic-related travel curbs

MOSCOW (MRC) -- US refiner Phillips 66 posted an adjusted quarterly profit, its first in a year, benefiting from a rebound in fuel demand due to the easing of pandemic-related travel curbs, reported Reuters. Adjusted earnings came in at USD329 million, or 74 cents per share, for the three months ended June 30, compared with a loss of USD509 million, or USD1.16 per share, in the first quarter.

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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Crude oil prices settled lower Aug. 3 as the continued spread of COVID-19 stoked concerns of demand-destroying mobility restrictions in Asia, reported S&P Global.

NYMEX September WTI settled down 70 cents at USD70.56/b and ICE October Brent declined 48 cents to USD72.41/b.

The rapid spread of delta variant of the coronavirus in Asia has stoked concerns that governments in the region could act quickly to institute new mobility restrictions. The Chinese government in July instituted mandatory quarantines at major ports, causing shipping backlogs and dislocations in the marine fuel oil market.

Market participants were preparing for a similar slate of measures in response to this latest outbreak. Airlines have canceled flights on certain routes, and mobility restrictions have been introduced in cities like Beijing.

NYMEX September RBOB settled down 39 points at USD2.2708/gal and September ULSD declined 94 points to USD2.1264/gal.

"While there remains plenty of cause for optimism - and I'm sure that will dominate more in the months ahead -- there's seemingly more focus on the delta spread, especially in China, the patches of softness appearing in the data and the risk of the Fed tapering too soon," OANDA senior market analyst Craig Erlam said in a note. "The manufacturing PMIs seem to have been the catalyst for the uncertainty this week, with both China and the US producing worse than expected prints."

The PMI data "feed into the narrative of peak growth and with the China data coming at a time of rising COVID cases, potentially darker days ahead," Erlam added. Data released Aug. 1 showed that China's Purchasing Manager's Index fell from 50.9 in June to 50.4 in July, as its economy struggles with extreme weather and a resurgence in COVID-19 infections.

Meanwhile, data from the Institute of Supply Management showed a slowdown in US manufacturing activity, with national factory activity falling from 60.6 in June to 59.5 in July, its lowest since January.

As MRC informed earlier, Saudi Arabia, the world's top crude oil exporter, will supply full contractual volumes of August-loading crude to at least five Asian customers. However, Saudi Aramco has turned down two of the buyers' requests for extra barrels.

We remind that Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), said in June he expects the company's deal with Saudi Aramco to materialise this year. Meanwhile, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, chairman of Saudi Aramco and the Governor of the Public Investment Fund, joined the board of Reliance as an independent director.

Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 953,400 tonnes in the first five months of 2021, which virtually corresponded to the same figure a year earlier. High denisty polyethylene (HDPE) shipments decreased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 607,8900 tonnes in January-May 2021, up by 33% year on year. Shipments of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased, whereas deliveries of PP random copolymers decreased.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The cost of sea freight reached a five-year high in late July 2021, reported Vedomosti.

Thus, as of July 29, the World Container Index (WCI, World Container Index), published by the international analytical agency Drewry, was USD9,330 for the transportation of a standard 40-ft container (FEU), which is the highest index value for, at least, the last five years and 368% higher year on year.

Moreover, the growth rate accelerated - in just a week from July 22 to July 29, WCI gained 4%.

On some routes, the cost of transportation is significantly ahead of the average indicators, which are reflected by the WCI.

According to Vladimir Frenty, a leading specialist in intermodal transportation at the Daxter logistics company, today's freight rates for transportation in the China-Europe direction exceed USD15,000 per FEU.

As MRC reported earlier, in June, 2021, ZapSibNeftekhim (part of SIBUR), Russia's largest polymer production plant, began shipping its products to Latin America, Southeast Asia (Southeast Asia), Africa and South Africa. It is noted that market factors and conditions in the global market at the beginning of 2021, which led to a shortage of polymers in different regions, contributed to the expansion of the sales geography of ZapSibNeftekhim. The complex's production is also supplied throughout Russia, to the CIS countries and Europe, Turkey and China.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 953,400 tonnes in the first five months of 2021, which virtually corresponded to the same figure a year earlier. High denisty polyethylene (HDPE) shipments decreased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 607,8900 tonnes in January-May 2021, up by 33% year on year. Shipments of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased, whereas deliveries of PP random copolymers decreased.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Angarsk Polymers Plant has resumed its low density polyethylene (LDPE) production after a scheduled turnaround, according to ICIS-MRC Price Report.

The plant's customers said Angarsk Polymers Plant had brought on-stream its LDPE production by 2 August after a scheduled an long maintenance. The outage began on 21 June and virtually lasted over 30 days. The plant's annual production capacity is about 75,000 tonnes.

It should also be noted that Gazprom neftekhim Salavat shut its polyethylene (PE) production capacities for one month on 20 July. The resumption of PE production is scheduled for 20 August. Gazprom neftekhim Salavat' s LDPE and high density polyethylene (HDPE) production capacities are 45,000 and 120,000 tonnes per year, respectively.

Angarsk Polymer Plant (controlled by Rosneft through OOO Neft-Aktiv) is the only petrochemical full-cycle plant in Eastern Siberia. The bulk of the produced ethylene is used by the plant for the production of LDPE, styrene monomer (SM) and polystyrene (PS). Straight-run gasoline and hydrocarbon gases, mainly produced by OAO Angarskaya NHK, are the feedstocks for the plant.
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