Market Flash

DIC will raise prices for epoxy resins and curing agents from April 15, with increases of up to 280 yen/kg.

Lubei Chemical expects Q1 net profit to rise 57.29%, driven by lower costs, better efficiency, and product mix improvement.

China has added five chemicals to its hazardous chemicals catalogue, further tightening source-level safety control and compliance requirements.

On April 16, Lotte Chemical unveiled its business restructuring and transformation roadmap at a CEO investor conference in Seoul.

• Lotte chemical

Although 2026 has only just passed its first third, global chemical trade has already undergone major shifts due to dense export controls.

Congo miners are cutting chemical use, showing the Middle East conflict is now disrupting the copper-cobalt and battery supply chain.

Europe’s chemical sector faces weak Q1 earnings as war-driven cost pressure collides with weak demand and fading competitiveness.

Market reports indicate that China has announced a comprehensive restriction on exports of by-product sulfuric acid starting May 1, 2026.

• Sulfuric Acid
• china
• Export

After a first-quarter surge, with TMA up 220% and imported PG up nearly 190%, 200+ firms stopped quoting in April.

Amazon is using kiosks and same-day delivery to make Lilly’s new weight-loss pill easier to access.

China’s lycopene consultation could move more health foods from registration into a faster filing-based pathway.

March 2026 showed how food regulation is speeding up across major markets at the same time.

Brazil’s new supplement rule updates ingredients, limits, claims, and labels in one sweeping regulatory move.

Japan’s revised standards for zinc gluconate and sulfites reinforce how tightly additive use is controlled.

India’s tariff cuts could trim agrochemical input costs by up to 9% and improve manufacturing economics.

High fertilizer and fuel costs are starting to alter rice planting decisions and could tighten export supply next season.

On April 8, 2026, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced its final affirmative determination in the anti-dumping investigation on imports of methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) from China.

• MDI
• anti-dumping
• China
• U.S.

U.S. chemical producers are benefiting from cheap ethane, but higher plastic prices are pushing new cost pressure downstream.

On April 4, Sekisui Specialty Chemicals announced that it will further increase the prices of its Selvol® polyvinyl alcohol, Selvol Ultiloc®, Selvol Ultalux®, and Selvol Premiol® product lines.

• Sekisui Specialty Chemicals