Some Countries Eased Lockdown Restrictions, Southeast Asia PET Demand Expected To Recover Gradually
- Local PET prices in Southeast Asia market showed limited changes
- Import PET Bottle offers from China moved in different directions
- Feedstock prices are expected to provide some supports for PET Bottle offers
Southeast Asian market players are expecting demand for PET Bottle to recover gradually as some countries eased lockdown restrictions. On the week commencing June 1, limited movements were captured for local PET Bottle prices within the Southeast Asia market. In Thailand, offers for local PET Bottle remained stable over the week, standing at THB24,000-25,000/ton ($759-791/ton) on cash, FD basis and excluding 7% VAT. For localized cargoes, offers for localized Chinese PET Bottle cargoes in Thailand dropped by THB100/ton ($3/ton) as compared to two weeks ago on the back of appreciation of local currency towards the US Dollar. In the import market, SSESSMENTS.COM noted that China PET Bottle offers to the Philippines and Malaysia moved in different directions. To the Philippines market, import offers for PET Bottle from China were unchanged from last week’s level, at $700/ton on LC at sight, CIF Philippines main port basis. The deals were concluded between $10-20/ton lower than the initial offer level. In Malaysia, import PET Bottle offers of China origin increased by $10/ton as compared to the same period. Detailed information for Indonesia and Vietnam market is available in WeeklySSESSMENTS of the respective countries.
The overall demand for PET resin in the Southeast Asia market remains subdued. Most of the converters within the region are still running at reduced capacity amid slow demand for the end-products and sufficient raw materials at converters’ end. In Thailand, the rainy season in the country is hampering demand for PET Bottle. Further added by a Chinese PET Bottle producer, Southeast Asian buyers were showing limited interest in import cargoes. On the supply front, no significant issues were reported by Southeast Asian PET market players to SSESSMENTS.COM.
In the days to come, the firm PTA and MEG prices are expected to support PET prices to remain stable or even firmer. Demand-wise, as some countries have eased lockdown restrictions and allow industries to resume operations, the aggregate demand is expected to recover gradually, sources told SSESSMENTS.COM.
