The US Pentaerythritol Market Starts Q3 2024 with a Mild Price Increase

With the beginning of the third quarter of 2024, Pentaerythritol prices witnessed an increment of 1% in the North American market amid the disturbance in supplies due to a decline in production rates during the past weeks. Last month, in the second half of June 2024, the production costs of Pentaerythritol improved with a firm increase in feedstock formaldehyde prices. The rising cost of crucial upstream natural gas resulted in higher production expenses, influencing upward movements in Formaldehyde prices. It negatively impacted the production rates of Pentaerythritol at the end of June 2024.

However, previously, the availability of Pentaerythritol stocks was on par with the demand and consumption of end users, and the offtakes remained stable amid no improvement in purchasing activities from buyers. The Pentaerythritol consumption rates were moderate to produce Polyurethane foams for the Automotive and manufacturing sectors.  At the same time, the orders for Pentaerythritol remained stable despite declining paint and coating consumption in the construction sector. In April 2024, the US construction sector continued to decline, reflected in decreased construction spending. However, the anticipated improvement in May 2024 is driven by an increase in house completion permits and a reduction in mortgage rates.

According to the US Census Bureau, construction spending in April 2024 was estimated at an annual rate of USD 2,099.0 billion, showing a slight decrease of 0.1% from the revised March estimate of USD 2,101.5 billion. Annual private construction spending was USD 1,611.9 billion, down 0.1% from the revised March figure of USD 1,613.3 billion, with anticipated continued reductions in May due to rising borrowing costs. Non-residential construction reached an annual rate of USD 721.5 billion in April, a 0.3% decrease from the revised March estimate of USD 723.8 billion. At the same time, the cost support on Pentaerythritol was stable from feedstock Formaldehyde due to moderate demand from downstream adhesive and textile manufacturers and no change in costs of upstream Methanol due to shifting demand. As per the ChemAnalyst data, the Pentaerythritol FOB Texas in the USA witnessed USD 1900/MT.

As per the estimation, Pentaerythritol prices are expected to rise in the international market as the demand from the paint and coatings industries likely to remain firm. It might stress the availability of supplies in the market. Consequently, market players might raise their quotations to improve their profit margins. Furthermore, logistics might be affected in the early third quarter due to the La Niña effect and hurricane season in the region. It may raise the Pentaerythritol stocking practices by buyers.