For the Quarter Ending December 2024
North America
In Q4 2024, the North American Ethyl Cellulose market saw a notable decline, with prices staying on the weaker side. The price drop was largely driven by reduced production costs in major manufacturing regions, leading to heightened price competition among global exporters. U.S. buyers delayed purchases, anticipating further price drops, while high domestic inventories led suppliers to adopt aggressive pricing strategies.
Additionally, on the demand side, the sluggish pace of transactions phased and reduced productions at major downstream factories further reduced consumption, creating an imbalance in supply and demand that led to reduced prices. As a result, Domestic suppliers, struggling with sluggish sales, implemented aggressive destocking strategies to manage inventory.
However, by December, the market sentiments witnessed a modest upward trend, and the U.S. Ethyl Cellulose market experienced a steady rebound in import prices, primarily influenced by rebounded market sentiment and improved demand from critical downstream sectors. Benefitting from this, downstream suppliers adopted aggressive pricing sentiments, thereby trading their goods at a higher price across the region. As a result, collectively, these dynamics painted a bullish picture for the Ethyl Cellulose market during this period, underscoring the challenges in achieving sustained market stability and optimistic trade dynamics.
Asia Pacific
During the entire fourth quarter of 2024, the Chinese Ethyl cellulose market exhibited bearish trends driven by supply-demand imbalances and price volatility. October saw sharp price declines due to supplier destocking, lower freight costs, and oversupply, leading to reduced trading activity. November brought moderate improvement as export prices rose, driven by tighter global supply chains and increased purchasing from pharmaceutical, coating, and adhesive industries in North America and Europe. The dollar's appreciation against the yuan supported higher import quotations, creating a buyer's market and boosting export prices. December witnessed market deterioration with weak buying sentiment and oversupply. Downstream demand remained sluggish as buyers limited purchases to immediate needs. President-elect Trump's announcement of potential new tariffs prompted aggressive destocking by Chinese suppliers through discounted pricing. China's currency devaluation in response to tariff threats complicated pricing dynamics. High inventory levels, conservative purchasing from key importers, and weak feedstock wood pulp costs maintained downward pressure on export prices.
Europe
The German Ethyl Cellulose market showed mostly bearish trends in Q4 2024 before recovering in December. Early quarter prices fell due to weak downstream demand and limited buying, compounded by the euro's depreciation against the USD which raised import costs. Competitive Asian supplies also impacted the market. November continued the downward trend, influenced by lower APAC production costs and sluggish eurozone economy. German traders, as major importers, adopted cautious strategies reflecting international price patterns. However, December marked a turnaround with increased momentum. The pharmaceutical sector's robust growth and higher preservative demand boosted procurement. Strategic stockpiling by neighboring EU markets benefited traders with improved sales. The euro's continued weakness against the dollar created a supplier-driven market, allowing sellers to maintain higher prices. Year-end saw improved market sentiment with traders clearing inventory at higher prices, while extended delivery times and stricter compliance requirements sustained upward price pressure.
