As April 2025 begins, the German Polyurethane Resin market has maintained a relatively stable pricing environment, despite a series of price hike announcements by major producers in March. Industry players largely resisted the anticipated increases, a response driven by adequate supply levels and subdued demand from key downstream sectors.

Huntsman Chemicals initiated the round of upward pricing revisions on March 10, 2025, attributing the decision to ongoing cost inflation across raw materials, energy, and logistics. Shortly thereafter, BASF followed suit, implementing an increase of prices on its Polyurethane Resin offerings. However, the intended hikes did not fully translate into realized market prices. The impact was moderated by abundant availability, as suppliers continued to fulfill market needs using previously accumulated inventory, despite operating at reduced production levels.

In anticipation of further disruptions, many processors had accelerated procurement in March, placing bulk orders to shield operations from potential shortages. As a result, several players continue to hold ample stock, which they continued to utilize amid ongoing weak demand conditions, particularly from the construction sector. Moreover, the German Polyurethane Resin market continued and to face the bearish pressure of the older cargoes having originated from Asia which continued to circulate and traded at lower prices.

Despite multiple price hike efforts—some exceeding EUR 100/MT—market acceptance from downstream players of Polyurethane Resin has been limited. End users, faced with weak demand and sufficient material availability, have pushed back against the increases. In many cases, distributors continued offering the same materials at discounted rates, undermining producers' pricing objectives.

The German construction sector remained under significant strain throughout March and the broader first quarter of 2025. Persistent retrenchments among construction firms, coupled with cautious project approvals and elevated input costs, contributed to lackluster activity, including Polyurethane Resin. Industry feedback highlighted slow customer decision-making, high material prices, and rising financing costs as the primary constraints weighing on demand, thus providing no support to the Polyurethane Resin market

One of the few sources of support for Polyurethane Resin pricing during late March and early April stemmed from tightness in feedstock Polyol supply. A force majeure declared by Shell Chemicals had disrupted output at its Pernis, Netherlands site, prompting moderate price acceptance in the range of EUR 30–50/MT. Concurrent supply constraints at Repsol and Covestro also offered brief support to Polyurethane resin prices within the German market.

However, any upward momentum appears to be short-lived in the Polyurethane Resin market. With Shell Chemicals now reportedly lifting the force majeure on its three Polyol units—collectively representing 300,000 MT/year of capacity—market participants expect an easing of supply constraints. This development, alongside continued destocking of competitively priced inventories imported from Asia, is poised to reintroduce downward pressure on resin of Polyurethane resin prices throughout the remainder of April.

The cumulative effect of subdued end-use demand, ample inventories, and returning feedstock supply suggests a challenging pricing environment for Polyurethane Resin in the near term, as the market continues to adjust to shifting dynamics across supply chains and downstream sectors.