WeeklySSESSMENTS: SEA PET Prices Week Starting July 27

Author: SSESSMENTS

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Price Adjustments Recorded In Southeast Asia PET Market, Demand Remained Bearish

Offers for local and import PET Bottle cargoes moved in tandem
Finished product demand not yet recovered
Players foresee similar outlook for pricing and demand

Price adjustments were recorded in the Southeast Asia PET market this week. In Thailand, PET Bottle offers from two local producers were stable on the low-end of the price range, stood at THB22,500/ton ($714/ton) on cash, FD Thailand basis and excluding 7% VAT. Whereas in Malaysia, offers for local cargoes were MYR20/ton ($14/ton) lower on the low-end of the price range. From imports, a Chinese producer maintained a stable offer level to the Philippines and Thailand market. All changes compared to last week’s offer levels. The Chinese producer mentioned that it's not worth it to adjust the prices now as buyers in Southeast Asia tend to source locally and the majority of the customers also have sufficient inventory. Detailed information for Indonesia and Vietnam market is available in WeeklySSESSMENTS of the respective countries.

Demand-wise, SSESSMENTS.COM was told that the Southeast Asia PET market remains bearish. Demand in Thailand remains weak because of the monsoon and low purchasing power for the finished product with Thai converters reported production rate below 50% from normal capacity. A similar condition also experienced by Philippines converters, which informed that their current operating rate is between 50-60% due to manpower and transportation issues. Meanwhile, some Malaysian converters still manage to run production at 80-85%. More added, Malaysia’s MITI has launched an anti-dumping investigation on import PET cargoes of several origins, which according to converters, targeting import PET cargoes from China. With the possibility that ADD will be granted, local PET producers could have much more room to manoeuvre Malaysian market, which still has a lot of potential.

Looking ahead, market participants opine that the demand will be soft in August, following the pattern in July. Speaking about prices, SSESSMENTS.COM noted that both local and import cargoes in Southeast Asia might be stabilized in the near term since the current levels are already considered very low. Even though the feedstock price remains relatively firm, weak demand would not support upward adjustments of PET prices.

Local PET Bottle offers on cash, FD basis, excluding VAT in all terms