Thermoplastic Elastomer (TPE) prices have appreciated by almost 1.7% in the US market during August 2023. As economic situations in the United States continued to show signs of recovery, demand for TPE from downstream construction and industrial segments increased, even though the automotive sector in the United States showed a depreciation of 4%% in automotive sales. Exports of TPE to the major importing country, Canada, were also healthy as the manufacturing industry showed improvements, with PMI increasing from 46 in June to 49 in July, with further appreciations also expected in August. The industrial output of Canada also witnessed a surge of over 5% in the month of August because of improving economic conditions across North America, thereby increasing demand for TPE across North America. Healthy export orders of TPE were witnessed despite the major automotive industry underperforming in July, with sales depreciating by 6%. Consumer Price Indices also showed a healthy increase with the exhibition of an increment of over 3% in Canada and 2% across the United States, which indicated a cooling of inflation rates and healthy purchasing activities amongst consumers across North America. Furthermore, the construction industry across China also exhibited a healthy revival, with industrial output recovering by almost 3.7% on a year-on-year basis. Consumer purchasing sentiments have begun to exhibit an optimistic outlook as most economic indicators showed signs of revival, which increased demand for TPE from the exporting country of the United States. Demand for TPE for utilization in downstream construction was also heavy as construction activities across China resumed after experiencing a slowdown. However, prices of Vulcanized TPE declined by almost 1%, which primarily finds its application in the manufacturing of automotive parts as the automotive industry has continued to struggle in August, with sales declining by approximately 7% in China, across 4% in Canada approximately by 5% in the United States as prices of feedstock butadiene and styrene stabilized.

Overall, the current market for TPE looks favorable as economic conditions across the United States continue to improve, with further increments in the prices being anticipated. Furthermore, purchasing activities amongst consumers are expected to have a positive outlook amidst improving economic conditions in North America and China, which are likely to improve footwear sales, another major downstream application of TPE. Moreover, prices of TPE may surge as Saudi Arabia plans to increase feedstock Crude oil prices, which increases upstream styrene and butadiene prices.