German Ethylene Carbonate Market Stagnates in Feb 2024 Amid low Demand and Policy Shifts

Hamburg, Germany: The Ethylene Carbonate market in Germany continued to demonstrate stagnancy throughout February 2024, as the market did not notice any significant developments. The demand from the downstream Lithium-ion battery manufacturing industry continues to remain bleak whereas, the producers of Ethylene Carbonate are struggling with fluctuating raw material prices.

Despite logistics disruptions and rising freight rates in the Red Sea region, as well as elevated feedstock Ethylene Oxide prices, product’s prices have shown stability for the fourth consecutive month in February 2024, and as a result, no major fluctuations in the production costs of Ethylene Carbonate was observed this month. This stability is mainly attributed to pricing policies which remained steady, with average demand offsetting disruptions in the supply chain, thereby preventing margin recovery as initially anticipated by the industry players in the downstream industries such as Ethylene Carbonate manufacturing.

Despite the challenging circumstances, domestic Ethylene Carbonate suppliers are considering margin recovery strategies once market conditions improve, given the profitability challenges they have faced since the second half of 2023. With producer margins currently in negative territory, some suppliers are planning to increase Ethylene oxide prices in March 2024, regardless of the next ethylene settlement eventually benefitting the downstream markets including Ethylene Carbonate.

In Europe, average prices of the upstream Ethylene experienced a notable increase of USD 35/ton, reaching USD 1180/ton in the last week (on a weekly basis), reflecting a gain of around 3%.

On the demand side, in December 2023, Germany surprised the automotive industry by suddenly discontinuing its incentive program for electric vehicles (EVs), despite being known for pioneering electric mobility through tax incentives. Subsequently, the nation saw a sharp decrease in EV sales, highlighting the significant influence of policy decisions on consumer behavior and market dynamics, eventually impacting the Ethylene Carbonate market.

According to recent data, a significant impact of Germany’s decision: comparing January 2024 to December 2023, new electric vehicle sales dropped by a remarkable 54.9%, while plug-in hybrid sales also declined significantly by 19.6%. In contrast, there was a slight increase in the market for vehicles with internal combustion engines, with gas-powered vehicles rising by 9.1% and diesel vehicles by 9.5%.

According to the ChemAnalyst pricing intelligence, the Ethylene Carbonate market is anticipated to remain stressed in the upcoming weeks. It is anticipated that the prices of Ethylene Carbonate could rebound if consumer demand improves whereas, the supply-related issues for the materials used to manufacture Ethylene Carbonate ease further in the upcoming weeks. Additionally, the government’s approach to improving the incentive programs is presumed to bolster the EV market in Germany.