Aromatics
Overview
The global aromatics market is made up of several diverse product markets and can be affected by a great many factors.
Benzene is a highly traded and volatile commodity because of its predominantly co-product nature and unpredictable supply. Styrene, benzene’s largest derivative, represents about 50pc of global benzene demand. Anyone involved in the benzene industry – directly or indirectly – needs market and pricing insight to anticipate supply shortages and large swings in pricing.
Meanwhile, the toluene and xylenes isomer markets are intertwined with the global markets for gasoline. Toluene and xylenes are highly traded commodities that create a lot of interest in the industry because of the various factors that affect demand growth. Outside of their inter-relationship with the gasoline markets, the major end-uses for these commodities vary across the world, from polyester fibres and food and beverage packaging to construction. Anyone involved in the toluene and xylenes industries – directly or indirectly – needs insight into how the toluene and xylenes markets can or will impact on their business, from raw material costs or as a price indicator for downstream products.
Our aromatics experts will help you determine what trends to track and how to stay competitive in today’s ever-changing global markets.
Latest aromatics news
Browse the latest market moving news on the global aromatics services industry.
Chemical markets prepare for Canadian rail strike
Chemical markets prepare for Canadian rail strike
Houston, 2 August (Argus) — Chemical industries in North America are bracing for a potential rail strike in Canada, but some markets expect greater impacts than others. Participants across a variety of industries have expressed greater certainty that a rail strike is now likely after momentum for a strike several months prior had fizzled out. The Canadian Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) is making considerations that are due to be posted no later than 9 August, with some market participants expecting a strike to be called somewhere within 72 hours thereafter. The CIRB is evaluating what, if any, materials would be constituted as essential to move even during a strike. Chlorine The chlor-alkali market has raised concerns about a potential strike, with some suppliers of chlorine and hydrochloric acid (HCl) in Canada pushing for a strike to be delayed or for its products to be considered essential. Chlorine and HCl are both used in water treatment, and suppliers have said a prolonged stoppage in rail service without proper considerations for such products could endanger some municipal water supplies. In the lead up to a potential strike, Canadian chlor-alkali producers and their US counterparts positioned close to the Canadian border have been trying to build up buyers' on-site inventories as a precaution. Producers have warned, however, that such contingency plans only work if the strike is not prolonged, as stoppages lasting longer than a few weeks could be problematic. Wildfires across central Canada have been complicating the efforts to ensure downstream inventories, as the fires have encroached on crucial rail lines and delayed or rerouted supply. Polymers In the polymers markets, polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) producers in Canada, including Nova Chemicals and Heartland Polymers, made advanced preparations for a rail strike back in May. Both companies had moved some inventories in advance to storage warehouses in the US to limit supply disruptions to US customers. In addition to storage on the US side, sources said the Canadian producers were also making plans for storage on the Canadian side so they could continue to operate, even if railcars were no longer moving. As long as a strike would not last more than a few weeks, most market participants said they believed there would be minimal disruption to the overall market. An extended strike would likely result in some shipping delays, but producers on the US side could raise operating rates and potentially help to fill in any supply gaps. Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) customers in Canada had stocked up on supply back in May as well, with minimal concerns of disruption so long as any stoppage did not drag on. Some pipe producers with plants in Canada have also said the need to stock up on inventory has been lessened due to Canada's weaker economy and construction sector. Polystyrene (PS) distributors have been positioning resin supply in the northeast and Midwest to quickly move across the border if need be, but warehouses in Canada were reportedly oversupplied on PS and turning away extra railcars. Recycled polymers market participants indicated that with current low demand and low volume trades, the rail strike will likely lead to more truck usage rather than completely halting trades altogether. Chemicals The butadiene (BD) market reported that a Canadian rail strike would impact cross-border trade flows of feedstock crude C4 and BD into the US. A BD producer in Sarnia, Ontario, primarily delivers BD to US customers in the Midwest — a fact that has prompted some concern from US customers about the impacts of a potential rail strike. Some BD buyers have worried that prolonged disruptions to Canadian volumes could add tightness to the domestic US market, especially in cases where consumers are unable to source volumes from the US Gulf coast. Concerns from the ethylene and aromatics markets were muted, and the isocyanate and polyurethane (PU) markets expressed little concern as most buyers were able to bring supply in by truck. Moreover, the vast majority of supply for the isocyanate chain comes from production in the US Gulf, meaning the majority of any transit would be conducted on lines not impacted by the strike. Methanol market participants also did not express significant concerns. By Aaron May, Michelle Klump, Joshua Himelfarb, Zach Kluver, and Catherine Rabe Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
South Korea's S-Oil restarts PX unit at low run rates
South Korea's S-Oil restarts PX unit at low run rates
Singapore, 2 August (Argus) — South Korean producer S-Oil restarted its 1mn t/yr paraxylene (PX) unit in Onsan on 1 August and is running at low rates of 20pc, according to a source close to operations. This came after the PX unit was shut on 28 July, because a fire had broken out at an isomerisation unit's heater unit. The PX unit managed to restart after obtaining approval from authorities, despite market participants initially expecting a longer closure because of investigations and the need to pass safety assessments. But S-Oil's isomerisation unit remained closed because of severe damage at the heating facility, so the producer will have to bypass the isomerisation process to produce PX. This means that PX yields would be heavily compromised, with the unit now forced to operate at just 20pc, which translates to 200,000 t/yr of production. The unit previously operated at 80pc before the fire broke out. The firm expects its PX unit to remain at current low run rates, until the isomerisation unit's heating facility is replaced. The replacement is expected to take several months as the technical parts need to be imported. S-Oil have reached out to term contract offtakers in the domestic and export markets toreduce their monthly allocated PX volumes. The company received amicable agreements from all affected parties, said a source close to the firm. Some domestic PX buyers are considering reducing their PTA operating rates to manage the supply losses, said a South Korean PTA producer. South Korean domestic PTA producers are unlikely to urgently seek spot cargoes to fill shortages, as the economics to produce PTA are currently below breakeven point. Average PTA-PX margins stood at $88/t and $87/t respectively for June and July. The industry-acknowledged breakeven point is at $90-100/t, said a South Korean PTA producer. By Alicia Goh Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Malaysia's Lotte Titan yet to produce on-spec aromatics
Malaysia's Lotte Titan yet to produce on-spec aromatics
Singapore, 19 June (Argus) — Malaysian petrochemical producer Lotte Titan has yet to produce on-specification aromatics after its aromatics unit in Pasir Gudang restarted on 10 June. The unit, which can produce up to 110,000 t/yr of benzene and 60,000 t/yr of toluene, continues to face technical issues after experiencing delays to its restart date earlier this month, with flaring being observed at the Pasir Gudang complex. The company now aims to produce on-specification aromatics products by the end of the week. The associated No.2 naphtha cracker, which also restarted on 10 June, is producing on-specification olefins, although production rates remain unstable. The No.2 cracker has a nameplate capacity of 430,000 t/yr of ethylene and 220,000 t/yr of propylene. By Joonlei Lee Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Ineos Styrolution to close Sarnia SM plant
Ineos Styrolution to close Sarnia SM plant
Houston, 11 June (Argus) — Global styrenics producer Ineos Styrolution plans to permanently close its430,000 metric tonne (t)/yr styrene monomer (SM) production site in Sarnia, Ontario, by June 2026. "The long-term prospects for the Sarnia site have worsened to the point that it is no longer an economically viable operating asset," Ineos Styrolution chief executive Steve Harrington said on Tuesday. The Sarnia site was shut down on 20 April to address issues related to benzene (BZ) emissions after the Canadian government issued a BZ emissions control order on 18 April. The company said it continues to assess what would be required to restart the plant, a process that will require about six months. Ineos said complying with the BZ emissions control order was unrelated to the decision to permanently close the plant. Ineos said it has made several investments to ensure safe and reliable operations and that additional large investments unrelated to plant startup were necessary for site operations moving forward, which the company considers economically impractical. Ineos declined to comment further. Sources close to the company said Ineos has been fulfilling Sarnia's customer orders with products from Texas units in Baytown and Texas City. By Jake Caldwell Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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