MOSCOW (ICIS-MRC) -- Despite negotiations on the contract price of ethylene for February at the level of January, European producers have raised export PVC prices for the CIS markets by EUR20-30/tonne, according to ICIS-MRC Price report.
The contract ethylene price in Europe for February was agreed at the level of January. Despite this fact, European producers have raised their export PVC prices for the CIS markets for February, citing poor marginality of the production. Some market participants do not exclude that the rise of the European PVC price was also due to the limited volumes and price increases in the U.S.
Deals for January shipments of European PVC were concluded in the range of EUR730-780/tonne, FCA. For February shipments, European makers managed to get a price increase to the level of EUR750-810/tonne, FCA, citing the high cost of feedstock.
Some market participants do not exclude that European PVC producers got such a significant increase in prices at the beginning of the year due to the absence of an alternative - North American PVC. February export prices for North American PVC rose to the level of USD1,000-1,020/tonne, FAS Houston, with export quotas slashed several times. Besides, there are no price offers for the resin from Formosa and Georgia Gulf.
MRC