Aromatics

Benzene prices on an FOB Korea basis and paraxylene (PX) prices on a CFR Northeast Asia basis moved in a narrow range. In China, factories producing end-products would be shut down before, during and after Lunar New Year holidays on Feb 10-17. For this reason, there were concerns that demand for products in polyester chain such as PX and purified terephthalic acid (PTA) might decrease.

Olefins

In the Northeast Asia ethylene market, available cargoes were limited and discussions were inactive. Northeast Asian ethylene makers were conducting production cuts to refrain from spot sales. Further, navigation at the Panama Canal was restricted while in the Red Sea, vessels refrained from going through there due to the attacks from the Houthi. Therefore, the inflow of US cargoes and Middle Eastern cargoes to Asia was decreasing and this was also a reason why available cargoes were limited. On the other hand, as demand was weak, the market was unlikely to be pushed up.

The Asia propylene market was firm. Since some Southeast Asian Petrochemical makers were buying aggressively, market sentiments strengthened.

The Asia butadiene market was still firm. There were few available cargoes while buying interest from end-users was still observed. As a result, market sentiments were strong.