需求侵蝕抵消美國(guó)苯乙烯供應(yīng)收緊

據(jù)ICIS網(wǎng)站5月15日休斯頓報(bào)道 美國(guó)苯乙烯供應(yīng)本周略有收緊，因生產(chǎn)商INEOS Styrolution自3月開(kāi)始定期維護(hù)以來(lái)，一直在德克薩斯州的德克薩斯市關(guān)閉工廠。該工廠原計(jì)劃4月份重新開(kāi)工，但由于目前市場(chǎng)形勢(shì)不利，可能會(huì)推遲。AmSty在路易斯安那州圣詹姆斯的95.3萬(wàn)噸/年工廠重新啟動(dòng)了第二套裝置。

建筑業(yè)、汽車業(yè)和家電業(yè)放緩導(dǎo)致的苯乙烯需求減少，超過(guò)了潛在的供應(yīng)短缺。包裝應(yīng)用的需求在4月份有所上升，5月份下降了30-40%，并已恢復(fù)到冠狀病毒前的水平。

苯乙烯需求下降的原因之一是，3月中旬美國(guó)汽車工人聯(lián)合會(huì)（UAW）一名成員在密歇根州沃倫的一家工廠感染了冠狀病毒，導(dǎo)致北美大部分汽車生產(chǎn)停產(chǎn)。美國(guó)汽車制造商繼續(xù)制定恢復(fù)運(yùn)營(yíng)的計(jì)劃，而5月18日重啟的計(jì)劃正變得更加堅(jiān)定。

由于本周達(dá)成的交易在前一周的范圍內(nèi)，現(xiàn)貨出口價(jià)格基本穩(wěn)定。5月份生產(chǎn)的現(xiàn)貨大部分已經(jīng)售出，市場(chǎng)參與者正在討論6月份的成交量。本周現(xiàn)貨出口價(jià)格保持穩(wěn)定，周線區(qū)間和周五收盤(pán)區(qū)間是根據(jù)前一周跌入?yún)^(qū)間的交易進(jìn)行評(píng)估。

美國(guó)5月苯乙烯合約上周被評(píng)估為小幅下跌，此前由于大流行緩解措施導(dǎo)致需求減少，上游苯供應(yīng)量下降。5月份合同價(jià)格的小幅下降是在3月和4月出現(xiàn)較大幅度下降之后出現(xiàn)。

苯乙烯是一種用于制造乳膠和聚苯乙烯樹(shù)脂的化學(xué)品，又可用于制造塑料包裝、一次性杯子和絕緣材料。

王磊 摘譯自 ICIS

原文如下：

Tightening US styrene supply offset by demand erosion

US styrene supply tightened slightly this week as producer INEOS Styrolution kept its Texas City, Texas plant down since starting a scheduled maintenance in March. The plant was scheduled to restart in April, but it could be delayed as current market dynamics are unfavourable. AmSty restarted its second unit at its 953,000 tonne/year plant in Saint James, Louisiana.

Styrene demand erosion resulting from slowdowns in construction, automotive and appliance sectors outweighs potential supply shortages. Demand for packaging applications, which was observed higher in April, fell by 30-40% in May and has normalised to pre-coronavirus levels.

One of the reasons styrene demand has fallen is that most North American auto production was halted in mid-March, after a United Auto Workers (UAW) union member contracted the coronavirus at a plant in Warren, Michigan. US automakers continue working on plans to resume operations, and 18 May restart is firming.

Spot export prices were largely steady as deals concluded this week were within the previous week’s range. Most spot material from May production has been sold, and market participants are discussing June volumes. Spot export prices remained steady this week. The weekly range and Friday’s closing range were assessed on the deals that fell within range set in the previous week.

US May styrene contracts, which were assessed last week at a small decrease after facing downward pressure from lower upstream benzene amid demand erosion caused by pandemic mitigation efforts. The smaller decrease in contract prices for May follows larger decreases observed in March and April.

Styrene is a chemical used to make latex and polystyrene resins, which in turn are used to make plastic packaging, disposable cups and insulation.