Methanol Prices Continue to Rise Across the Market
TCC Methanol Product Manager
Cory Mullins anticipates rising Methanol prices heading into December and through the new year. Methanol prices rose 8 cents last week alone, with continued price increases expected.
Domestic China 2-EH Prices Rising
China’s domestic 2-EH prices are expected to continue to rise with tight supply and increasing downstream demand. Supply has been shrinking throughout Q4 due to closures throughout China as environmental regulations continue. The rising costs and supply issues impact downstream plasticizers such as DOTP and DOP, raising costs by 3-6%.
Pricing Notes & Trends Going to 2018
With relatively mild weather throughout the U.S. heading into December, a majority of products and prices are seen unusually flat, or with minimal gains if any. Propylene settled up only 1-1.5 cents, while orthoxylene’s are up in Europe but flat in the U.S. With the unusually warm weather thus far, natural gas and propane prices remain low as the year comes to an end. Other materials including Benzene continues to rise, as well as Methanol up 8cpg last week alone.