Styrene Price Rose Sharply on Supply Tightness
The sharp price increase of styrene is mainly attributed to the supply.
In terms of Chinese-made goods, the styrene output in Q4 of 2020 was 2,788.4kt, and styrene output in Q1 of 2021 was 2,855.4kt, which was 2.4% higher than that in Q4 of 2020 and 38.8% higher than that in Q1 of 2020. From Q4 of 2020 to Q1 of 2021, the new capacity being put into operation was 1,000kt. The styrene units at Sinochem Quanzhou Petrochemical and CNOOC and Shell Petrochemicals were put into operation at the end of March, so the capacity and output at these two producers were included in the capacity and output of the styrene industry from April. The main reason for the limited increase in output from that in Q4 of 2020 was the intensive unit turnarounds in China. In Q1 of 2021, the capacity involved in the turnarounds was 2,357kt/a, and the loss was about 205.7kt.
In terms of imported resources, Asian styrene price is higher than that in China’s domestic market. Besides, many foreign units stopped production. Styrene units in the U.S and Europe, which involved in the capacity of 3,160kt/a, malfunctioned or shut down due to external factors from February to March. The turnarounds in the Middle East, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan Province also concentrated in February, March and April, which resulted in a significant reduction in import volume. According to GACC, the total import volume of styrene from January to March 2021 was 505.2kt, down 34.36% Y-O-Y from 769.6kt.
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