Polyester bottle flakes this week showed an initial rise followed by a decline, but remained generally stable.

January 9 news

This week (January 5-9, 2026), the polyester bottle chip market in China showed a trend of first rising then declining, but overall remained stable. According to the commodity market analysis system, as of January 9, the average price in East China was 6,075 CNY per ton.

I. Cost Side: Raw materials PTA and ethylene glycol experienced price fluctuations, leading to a month-on-month cost increase of 178 CNY/ton and putting downward pressure on processing fees.

II. Supply Side: Stable start-up rates + localized tightening, overall relatively loose.

Operating Rate: This week’s operating rate was 73.36% (up 0.31% from the previous week), with production reaching approximately 335,700 tons. Overall supply remains ample.

Device dynamics: Maintenance and restarts coexist, with localized, phased tightening (e.g., short-term shutdowns at some major plants), supporting quoted prices in key regions (e.g., South China 6090 remains stable).

Inventory and circulation: Port and factory inventories are neutral, with smooth spot circulation in East China, while South China is tighter, forming a regional price difference (South China is 50-60 CNY/ton higher than East China).

III. Demand Side: Primarily driven by essential inventory replenishment, with no large-scale stockpiling.

Downstream rhythm: Beverage/packaging essential orders support, with small replenishment orders; major beverage companies in China have sufficient stock and there is no concentrated stockpiling, showing weak willingness to chase higher prices.

Transaction characteristics: The bid-ask spread is significant (bid at 5980–6130 vs. ask at 5930–5950), with transactions concentrated between 6030 and 6090, making it difficult to achieve substantial trading volumes.

Exports and Substitution: Export orders remain stable, while the increased supply of recycled PET is putting downward pressure on virgin bottle flakes, thereby limiting room for price rebounds.

Policy and season: Stockpiling before the Chinese New Year is nearing its end, and the pace of restocking is slowing down; industry self-discipline and expectations of production cuts are affecting operations, indirectly impacting prices.

Overall, it is expected that polyester bottle chips will mainly undergo a weak consolidation in the short term. The mainstream price for spot water-grade (tax-inclusive ex-factory) in East China is 5980-6080 CNY/ton.