Qingdao, China: Since the beginning of May, Poly Methyl Methacrylate (PMMA) prices have demonstrated an upward trend in the Asian market, backed by the robust demand from the end-user sectors coupled with the rising raw material prices.

In June, MMA producers attempted to increase prices by $3048/MT but were unsuccessful and ended up rolling over as a result of weakening MMA prices in the Chinese domestic market against the backdrop of Covid-19 lockdown at several cities and imposed strict control of transportation to mitigate the spread out until May.

Apart from the pandemic, Russia's conflict with Ukraine has lasted three months, causing major supply-chain disruptions and constant increases in natural gas prices. In addition, inflation will have a substantial negative impact on the global economy, especially in China. As a result, buyer enthusiasm decreased, and most buyers retreated to the side-lines for a wait-and-see mindset and only buying on a need-to-basis.

Meanwhile, in June, producers in Japan are exerting upward pressure on PMMA pricing as raw material costs and shipping costs grow. On the other hand, in India, PMMA prices are stable in June, indicating that domestic demand is stable during the Indian monsoon season, which runs from June to September.

In Malaysia, the market demand did not revive after the Muslim Ramadan holiday due to a several factors, the Poly Methyl Methacrylate market remained bearish in June. Furthermore, domestic market demand in Vietnam is stable, and PMMA offtake appears to be slowing. It has been reported that many factories are still unable to operate at total capacity, resulting in a labour scarcity that is not improving. Moreover, most acrylic sheet producers are suffering from shrinking margins because of high MMA costs and weakening demand, which has coincided with the arrival of low-cost cast sheets from China, which has dampened cast sheet orders and resulted in buyers adopting a wait-and-see attitude.