Santos, Brazil- In the American market, the prices of Butyl Acrylate are experiencing stability in their trend during the week ending on 22nd December 2023. Market participants witnesses a consistency in the demand from the downstream Paint and Coating enterprises and sufficient supplies from the traders along with the synchronized restocking of Butyl Acrylate. Despite the disruption in Panama and the Suez Canal, the trades of Butyl Acrylate from the manufacturing units to the significant importing nations didn’t change much amid moderate demand from the downstream enterprises. Therefore, to avoid the disruption in the supplies of the Butyl Acrylate, the ships were rerouted in the middle of their route due to the attack by the Houthis on the Red Sea.

In the North American market, the USA and Mexico, both are experiencing stability in their prices. Therefore, the producers are maintaining the production rate of Butyl Acrylate intact. Furthermore, the trading activities from the USA to Mexico are smooth maintaining the flat supply chain for Butyl Acrylate. The demand for Butyl Acrylate from the downstream Paint and Coating enterprises was moderate and is being fulfilled by the existing inventories. Also, the replenishment of the commodity is ensured as soon as the Butyl Acrylate existing stocks were utilized by the traders.

At the same time, in the South American market, the prices of Butyl Acrylate are maintaining their consistency with the previous week's at USD 1640/MT (CFR-Santos) on 22nd December 2023. Taking the market situation of Butyl Acrylate into consideration, the buyers as well are maintaining their purchasing activities constant, so that the supply/demand equilibrium does not get disturbed. There were  transportation of Butyl Acrylate cargos from the USA and China via Panama and the Suez Canal despite significant challenged faced by the distributors. However, in the Panama Canal, the queue of tankers is increasing due to the low water level in the Canal which is the result of a rainfall deficiency and El Nino effect. On normal days, the shipping capacity of the Panama Canal was 36 ships/day, but due to unfavorable conditions, the Panama Canal Authority reduced the no. of ships to 22/day.

Similarly, there were transportation of goods from China to Brazil via the route of the Suez Canal, however, due to the Houthis attack on the ships in the Red Sea forced the companies to reroute their ships to the longer routes and some have paused their shipments. Furthermore, the companies have decided to reroute their ships to the Cape of Good Hope, to prevent any further loss of their crew member’s safety and the goods. This may delay the shipments by 9-10 days along with the additional freight cost.

According to ChemAnalyst, the demand for Butyl Acrylate is anticipated to increase from the downstream Paint and Coating enterprises due to the coming New Year. However, due to the disruption in the shipments of the commodity, the freight charges are expected to increase, and the delay in the shipments due to the rerouting of the ships is possible, which may result in the price hike of the commodity. As per the Panama Canal Authority, the no. of ships will be further reduced to 18/day. In terms of downstream ventures, the requirement of Butyl Acrylate from the end-use Paint and coating may improve further along with the demand recovery in the American market.