DOP Market Inched Down This Week (Dec 1-7, 2017)

Octanol Market Review: The octanol market inched down this week. The dioctyl phthalate (DOP) market saw thin trading. Moreover, some octanol producers cut down prices on the sales pressure. Mainstream producers’ offers declined by RMB 100/mt. However, the trading remained weak. Most players were bearish about the market. Up to December 7, the closing prices of octanol in East China were in the range of RMB 8,300-8,400/mt, down RMB 150/mt or 0.38% from last week. Closing prices of octanol in North China were RMB 8,200/mt, down 0.43% from last week. The closing prices in Shandong were in the range of RMB 8,050-8,200/mt, down 0.82% week on week.

Phthalic Anhydride Market Review: Prices of phthalic anhydride (PA) produced via o-xylene moved marginally while the prices of PA produced via naphthalene inched down. Up to December 7, the closing prices of PA produced via o-xylene were RMB 8,400/mt in East China, down RMB 50/mt or 0.59% from last week. The closing prices of PA produced via naphthalene were RMB 7,900/mt in North China, down RMB 150/mt or 1.86% from last week. DOP producers showed resistance to PA, and the buying interest was weak. As the o-xylene and naphthalene prices were high, the decline of PA was limited.

DOP Market Review: The DOP market inched down this week. Up to December 7, the closing price of DOP in Jiangsu was RMB 8,775/mt, down RMB 225/mt or 2.5% week on week. The demand was tepid. But as most DOP producers were operating in loss, the prices of DOP won’t decline too much.