Petrochemical market participants in Latin America are hesitant to buy either polyethylene or polypropylene at the moment, sources said Monday on the sidelines of the Latin American Petrochemical and Chemical Association’s (APLA) 33rd annual meeting, held in Cartagena, Colombia, which kicked off Sunday.
With the expectation that prices will drop by December, multiple traders, distributors and buyers from Colombia, Brazil, Argentina and other countries are in wait-and-see mode.
“What is going to happen in the first trimester in 2014? We are debating this because everybody was expecting prices to drop a good amount in the end of this year but it did not happen. I believe prices are going down, but not that much,” a source from Chile said. “Prices might be stable in the coming weeks. One thing is right: there is no demand for prices go up,” the Chilean source said.
A buyer from Colombia also said that prices, mainly for PP, might be flat. “I am not hearing people buying. So, there is no need for producers change their prices,” the Colombian source said.
On the polyethylene side, the market might be a little bit more unstable. “We are having supply problems in US and Asia. That is why prices might move up and down,” a buyer from Colombia said.
Some current offers toward Latin America were heard during APLA. LDPE offers from the US were heard at $1,670/mt CFR Colombia, while HDPE grades from South Korea were heard at $1,580/mt CFR Colombia. LLDPE from the US was traded at $1,540/mt CFR Colombia.
“There is a lot of talking right now, but we need a more concrete scenario. I am buying just the amount I am selling in my country,” a Peruvian buyer said.
A Brazilian trader said that the sentiment in Brazil is quite pessimistic. “I’ve been noticing less private investment in my country,” the Brazilian trader said.
Source: platts.com
