Mumbai, India- With crude and Naphtha values fluctuations, Ethylene Dichloride (EDC) prices declined in the Asian region due to weak demand and deterred market sentiments. Feedstock Ethylene offers in India have crashed, taking down the costs of downstream PVC due to rising supplies and low purchasing activities affecting the price trend. Mounting inventories due to sluggish demand forced the producers to give discounts on the existing cargoes to clear their stocks.

With the week ending on 1st July, the price of Ethylene Dichloride in India slipped to INR 60210/ton Ex-Chennai and INR 57490/ton Ex-Kandla with a week-on-week declination of 1.08% and 1.11%, respectively.

In the Chinese market, surging Ethylene supply from South Korea and Saudi Arabia disrupted supply/demand equilibrium, resulting in a weak price trend. Downstream PVC prices are also affected by the utilization of existing inventories. Prices seem to be in a crash mode, with continuous decline, as supplies keep rising and demand remains suppressed across Asia by rising inflation. Reserves have increased as less turnaround in June weakened the cost support affecting the price trend.

The ethylene Dichloride market has picked up pace in Turkey since last week as a slew of bearish variables plaguing the downstream PVC market. July costs have surfaced with significant downfalls under lower offers from purchasers amid a weak trading environment. Asian Buyers have hence held out for revision in their price offers, delaying their monthly purchases and further exacerbating the bearish price scenario. Imports of EDC in India and China from the European region also decreased with weak market sentiments and sufficient product availability.

According to ChemAnalyst, the price of Ethylene Dichloride (EDC) in the Asian market will be more likely to slip further, supported by sluggish demand and weak offtakes among the consumers. The downstream Poly Vinyl Chloride (PVC) market will also remain deterred by low bidding and declining July benchmark contract prices. Prices of feedstock Ethylene and Chlorine will also fluctuate in the Asian market, affecting the downstream Petrochemical prices.