Changing Market Sentiments for Pentaerythritol in the US as Retail Sector Sales Surge

The Pentaerythritol market sentiments improved in the US market, and prices inclined during the second half of October 2023. The retail sector sales index rose by 0.7% in September 2023. It raised the orders from the end-users during the second half of October 2023.

Previously, the market sentiments for Pentaerythritol remained bearish from the consumer end during the first half of October 2023, and producers negatively revised their quotations due to sluggish product offtakes and firm availability of supplies in the US market. Consequently, the Pentaerythritol price decreased by almost 9% since the beginning of the month.

The previous stocks of Pentaerythritol were adequate in the market due to a decline in export and consumption rates during the last month. The sales index for the retail sector witnessed a decline of 0.5% in August from the previous month, leading to an adverse effect on the manufacturing sector's orders for September, amidst soaring inflation. Consequently, manufacturing activities declined in the downstream industries. Simultaneously, the offtakes remained low from insecticide manufacturers amid a reduction in consumption rates from the agriculture and horticulture sectors with the decline in global temperatures.

Inventory levels of Pentaerythritol saw a rise in September while domestic buyers' uptake remained low. This was due to a significant decrease in Di Pentaerythritol usage within the Polyether and Polyurethane film industries, which was a result of slow operations in the manufacturing sector. Also, inquiries were moderate from the paint sector.

Meanwhile, the cost support on Pentaerythritol remained stable on feedstock Formaldehyde from the past couple of weeks due to no significant change in the upstream Methanol quotations from suppliers amid firm availability of stocks and moderate offtakes from buyers.

At the end of the third week of October 2023, the Pentaerythritol discussions in the USA hovered at USD 2100/MT, according to the ChemAnalyst data sources.

As per the estimation, the Pentaerythritol prices will incline in the US market amid stressed production rates due to the weak availability of upstream Methanol supplies from exporters. As per the market sources, the Mississippi River water levels have reduced noticeably, and logistics companies have imposed restrictions on Mississippi River shipments. So, the supplies will remain inadequate in the market. Simultaneously, the retailers are preparing for the holidays and Black Friday sales around November 2023. The demand will be for mono-Pentaerythritol from the coating industry and Di Pentaerythritol from plasticizer manufacturers. So, the procurement activities will remain firm from the buyers, and orders for Pentaerythritol will incline during the mid-quarter.