Industry News
Chemical Industry News
Plant status: Qatar’s Qatofin to shut LLDPE unit for maintenance
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: Qatofin Company Limited Location: Mesaieed, Qatar Product: Linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) Capacity (tonnes/year): 670,000 Event start:...
China petrochemical futures fall on renewed trade tensions
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Most of China’s petrochemical futures dropped on Monday following reescalation of trade frictions between the world’s two largest economies. However, the loss was capped by...
NE Asian rPET producers resume exports to the US
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Some producers of recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) pellets in northeast Asia resumed exports to the US since last week after halting for almost a month due to the US...
Novel Metal Alloy Withstands Extreme Conditions
A new material might contribute to a reduction of the fossil fuels consumed by aircraft engines and gas turbines in the future. A research team from Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) has developed a refractory
From frying oil to coupling relays
Siemens Smart Infrastructure has launched a new series of coupling relays, with housing made from plastic that consists of 70 percent bio-based material - derived from biomass waste. The Akulon® K225-KS B-MB plastic was developed
Splitting water: How order and disorder direct chemical reactivity
Hydrogen is an important energy source for the future. Therefore, understanding the electrolysis process is essential. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research and the Yusuf Hamied Department of Chemistry at the University
Asia petrochemical shares fall amid renewed US-China trade war tensions
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Asian petrochemical shares were lower on Monday as the trade war between the US and China intensified over the weekend with US President Donald Trump threatening to impose 100%...
China’s Jan-Aug caustic exports up on lukewarm consumption, capacity expansion
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--China's caustic soda exports from January to August totaled 1,558,547 tonnes, up 46.4% compared to the same period in 2024, according to the ICIS Supply & Demand Database. Some...
China’s Jan-Aug EDC imports surge year on year on improved import parity
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--China's ethylene dichloride (EDC) imports from January to August totaled 231,309 tonnes, surging 231.3% compared to the same time period in 2024, according to the ICIS Supply &...
Plant status: China’s Lianyungang Petchem restarts HDPE Line 2, Line 1 still shut
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: Lianyungang Petrochemical Location: Xuwei, China Product: High density polyethylene (HDPE) Capacity (tonnes/year): 800,000 Event start: 15...
China’s average PX plants’ run rate stable
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--China’s para-xylene (PX) plants posted an unchanged average operating rate, due to minor changes in plant operations. In the week ended 10 October, the plants’ average run rate...
China’s average PTA plants’ run rate drops on maintenance, operation cuts
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--China’s purified terephthalic acid (PTA) plants posted a lower average operating rate, because Hengli Petrochemical’s No 1 unit in Dalian city entered scheduled maintenance and...
China’s average MTBE plant run rate down to 56.8% on maintenance
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--The average run rate of China’s methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) plants decreased to 56.8% in the week ended 10 October, down by 1.6 percentage points from the level before the...
Plant status: China’s Shandong Lihuayi shuts MTBE plant for maintenance
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: Lihuayi Lijin Refining and Chemical Location: Dongying, Shandong, China Product: Methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) Capacity (tonnes/year):...
China BPA average plant run rate down to 73.6% on unit shutdowns
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--China’s bisphenol A (BPA) plants posted an average run rate at 73.6% in the week ended 10 October 2025, down by 1.1 percentage points from the pre-holiday level, ICIS data showed....
China’s average run rate of PO plants rebounds to 64.1% on plant restarts
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--China’s propylene oxide (PO) plants posted an average run rate at 64.1% in the week ended 10 October 2025, up by 2.3 percentage points from the pre-holiday level, ICIS data...
NYMEX: US gas futures fall despite strong US LNG feedgas demand and mixed weather conditions
Front-month US natural gas futures fell on 10 October, despite strong demand from US LNG plants The November Henry Hub contract on NYMEX settled at $3.106/MMBtu, down nearly 5% from the previous...
SHIPPING: Asia-US container rates continue to slide as demand lull is likely through January
HOUSTON (ICIS)--Rates for shipping containers from east Asia and China to the US continued to slide this week and analysts expect to see downward pressure through the end of the year amid a demand...
INSIGHT: As US-China trade tensions escalate, with 100% tariff threat, chemical and energy trade flows at risk
NEW YORK (ICIS)--US-China trade tensions are quickly heating up, once again putting chemical and energy trade into focus. US President Donald Trump in a 10 October Truth Social post announced a 100%...
US Dow expects to restart PE units Poly 5, Poly 7 in Freeport ‘next week’
SAO PAULO (ICIS)--Dow expects to restart its units polyethylene (PE) units Poly 5 and Poly 7 at its Freeport, Texas site “in the next week” after a fire on 6 October brought most units down.