Polyethylene (PE) prices were steady to mostly lower

The long-term down trend remained intact, as prices for most PE grades yielded to new decade-low levels. There is a good amount of opacity in the contract market, with producers, large processors and major consultancies each indicating a variety of results and estimates for July. It has become increasingly difficult to peg these contract price movements, as discounts are seemingly being awarded to larger buyers in a hushed manner. The gap between contract and spot has grown very wide. In the meantime, producers continue to run their reactors at near-full capacity. While both domestic and export demand have been strong, upstream inventories have swelled to a new record high with additional new production starting up, as well.

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Article and photo from plasticstoday.