Lacking Positive Factors, Polyethylene Weakens and Downgrades

September 05, News

According to the commodity market analysis system, the average price of LLDPE (7042) on September 1st was 7,428 CNY/ton, and on September 5th it was 7,391 CNY/ton, a decrease of 0.49%. The average price of LDPE (2426H) on September 1st was 9,683 CNY/ton, and on September 5th it was 9,633 CNY/ton, a decrease of 0.52%. The average price of HDPE (2426H) on September 1st was 7,982 CNY/ton, and on September 5th it was 7,962 CNY/ton, a decrease of 0.25%.

This week, polyethylene quotations declined. During the period (August 29 to September 4), the loss of polyethylene production due to plant maintenance in China was approximately 113,100 tons, a decrease of 19,400 tons compared to the same period last week. Among them, the low-pressure units at Jilin Petrochemical, Quanzhou Sinochem, Tianjin Petrochemical's linear unit, and Shanghai Petrochemical's high-pressure 1PE unit have been restarted, leading to an increase in the operating rates of production enterprises and an overall rise in output. Additionally, there has been an increase in the availability of imported spot goods. On the demand side, downstream demand has shown some improvement, but the growth in new orders remains slow. Factories are replenishing their inventories at low prices in moderate quantities, providing insufficient support. In terms of costs, the recent decline in international oil prices has weakened the cost support for the polyethylene market. The speculative sentiment in the market has cooled down, and the polyethylene futures market has weakened, putting pressure on the spot market.

Next week, petrochemical plants in Daqing and Shanghai plan to restart, and the recent market spot supply is relatively abundant; with new plants gradually commissioning, the medium- and long-term supply pressure will increase; September is the traditional peak season for polyethylene, and there are positive expectations on the demand side, but currently, new orders from downstream are slow; it is expected that polyethylene will mainly undergo narrow adjustments.