High prices and low supply persist in the polyolefin market. Some players stocked up at the beginning of the month, observing a steady rise in prices and material shortages, while others are holding back in the hope of a change in trend.
Stadler Selecciona S.L.U. (a subsidiary of Stadler Anlagenbau GmbH) has designed and installed a light packaging plant for Valorsul to increase capacity and simplify operation at its Centro de Triagem do Oeste waste treatment facility in Cadaval, in the Greater Lisbon District of Portugal.
According to market players, converters are making cautious purchases this month. Most large manufacturers of finished products bought more material in January ahead of the anticipated price increase.
Latest figures show that the growth rate of total European installed plastics recycling capacity went down from 17% to 10% year on year in effect giving 12.5 million tonnes in 2022.
Stadler Anlagenbau GmbH, in collaboration with Krones, has designed and installed the new Republic Services Polymer Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, which processes plastic bottles, jugs and containers to produce plastic materials ready for use in new packaging. The first of its kind in North America, this facility closes the circular economy to meet the rising demand for high-quality and food-grade recycled plastic.
The majority of players expect recycled polyethylene's (R-PE) tough trading conditions to continue into 2024 due to ongoing bearish macroeconomic conditions, although many expect this to improve compared with 2023.
The polyolefin market has started reviving in H1 January. Market players say that in addition to completing December deliveries, they already have new orders for PP and PE, with the former bought more frequently than the latter.
Demand has been low in the Polish polyolefin market in the last pre-holiday week, according to Chem-Courier’s data. Converters have been tapping into their raw material stocks or purchasing only small batches.
New additions to the OQ Luban polypropylene impact copolymer (ICP) portfolio as well as a new LLDPE Rotomoulding offering OQ Luban LL8446.21 will be launched to customers by the end of 2023.
According to traders, clients have been ordering both large lots of several hundred tonnes and small ones of under 24 t delivered on pallets.
Despite raw material depreciation, converters did not buy more, they continue to purchase raw materials only on an as-needed basis. Some of them are using the stocks built during previous months
Polish converters continue to buy polyolefins on an ad hoc basis, and if possible, hold off new purchases in anticipation of further price cuts. Packaging remains one of the most active consuming industries.
