Methyl Methacrylate (MMA) costs have constantly been rising because of growing demand from the Paint and Coating industry as a solvent. Because of Russia and Ukraine war, soaring crude oil prices have squeezed feedstock Isobutylene, created a market imbalance, and resulting in a supply chain disruption.

Growing urbanization, industries, and rising demand from the end-user as a solvent in paint and coating sectors in the Asia Pacific region have weighed on MMA prices. The manufacturer has had to raise the cost of MMA production due to the continuous hike in raw materials prices. On the supply side, the war had created a severe supply chain problem, compounded by the stringent measures taken by China to control the Covid-19 epidemic spread out, which caused logistic disruptions, thereby resulting in a supply shortfall in the Chinese market. According to the ChemAnalyst database, prices of Methyl Methacrylate on 15th April in China increased by 2% on a week-on-week basis.

The production and trade activities are slowed down in South Korea due to the resurgence of Covid, resulting in the high freight charges, which led to the supply deficit in the Indian market as it majorly imports Methyl Methacrylate from South Korea. Similarly, the European market sentiments showed an upward trajectory in the Methyl Methacrylate due to increasing crude oil costs. Furthermore, because of the continuous energy crisis in the European region, certain manufacturing units curtail their running rates to safeguard their margins. In addition, the sanctions imposed by the United States against Russian imports influenced the shoot-up in the energy cost as well as inflation in the feedstock in European countries. Prices of MMA in Germany showed monthly inclination of 7% as on 15th April.  

According to the ChemAnalyst database, “Prices of Methyl Methacrylate are likely to soar in the upcoming weeks due to further upswing in demand from the downstream Paint and Coating industries. In the meantime, crude oil prices are forecasted to increase as well and likely to impact the feedstock Isobutylene prices”.