(ICIS) -- Rising ethylene spot prices and feedstock costs drove US February ethylene contracts up 3.75 cents/lb to 49.00 cents/lb ($1,080/tonne, ┬778/tonne), market sources said on Friday. The 8.3% increase for the February contract was largely in line with market expectations and erased a 3.25 cent/lb drop in January.
Spot ethylene was heard traded at 53.00-53.25 cents/lb on the Williams system and at 53.50-53.75 cents/lb on the Equistar system this week.
For the month of February, the average of the weekly spot ranges as assessed by ICIS was 48.9 cents/lb, compared with 42.8 cents/lb in January.
The continued increase in ethylene spot prices is likely to provide support for another contract hike in March, sources said.