Industry News
Chemical Industry News
Asia lubes shift to synthetics for performance, sustainability – BRB exec
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--The lubricant industry is shifting toward synthetic and semi-synthetic formulations, requiring advanced additive systems to meet demands for higher performance and sustainability...
Taiwan’s net-zero plans accelerating R&D in lubricants sector – CPC Corp exec
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Taiwan’s government-led net-zero and energy transition policies are accelerating the pace of research and development in the lubricants sector, an executive at state-owned refiner...
China major producers’ polyolefin inventories continue falling as producers destock
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--The combined polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) inventories of Chinese state-owned petrochemical giants Sinopec and PetroChina continued falling as producers destocked...
Plant status: Japan’s ENEOS to shut Mizushima PX in H2 Sept for maintenance
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: ENEOS Corp Location: Mizushima, Japan Product: Paraxylene (PX) Capacity (tonnes/year): 430,000 Event start: H2 September 2025 Event finish:...
Plant status: Japan’s Idemitsu Kosan shuts Chita PX unit
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: Idemitsu Kosan Location: Chita, Japan Product: Paraxylene (PX) Capacity (tonnes/year): 357,000 Event start: Around mid-September 2025 Event...
Plant status: Nippon Shokubai Indonesia eyes acrylic acid maintenance Q4 2026
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: Nippon Shokubai Indonesia Location: Cilegon, West Java, Indonesia Product: Acrylic acid Capacity (tonne/year): 80,000 (No 2 unit) Event...
Plant status: China’s Tianchen Qixiang restarts ACN unit
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: Tianchen Qixiang New Material Location: Zibo, Shandong, China Product: Acrylonitrile (ACN) Capacity (tonnes/year): 130,000 Event start: End-July...
Asian BD buying tempo tempered by mixed supply outlook
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Discussions in Asia’s spot butadiene (BD) market have recently been torn by mixed views on how regional output losses and the continued influx of deep-sea materials may play out...
Asia TiO2 indicative price unchanged, buyers show resistance
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Titanium dioxide (TiO2) spot indicative prices in Asia were unchanged so far on Friday. Sell indications were around $1,900/tonne FOB (free on board) China, similar to the assessed...
Plant status: China’s Xinjiang Tianye shuts No 3 MEG unit
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: Xinjiang Tianye Location: Shihezi, Xinjiang, China Product: Monoethylene glycol (MEG) Capacity (tonnes/year): 600,000 (200,000+400,000) Event...
US Olin, Mitsui to end JV that markets EDC, caustic soda
HOUSTON (ICIS)--Olin and Mitsui & Co have agreed to terminate by the end of 2025 Blue Water Alliance, a joint venture that buys, supplies and markets ethylene dichloride (EDC) and caustic soda,...
NYMEX: US gas futures slide on storage build
US natural gas futures fell on 18 September, pressured by a larger-than-expected storage build The October 2025 Henry Hub contract on NYMEX settled at $2.939/MMBtu, down 5.3% from the previous...
CRUDE SUMMARY: Oil prices down as concerns over US economy outweigh Fed rate cut
Federal Reserve announces interest rate cut Reduction was already largely priced in, muted response US economic pessimism putting ceiling on prices LONDON (ICIS)--As widely expected, the US Federal...
SHIPPING: Authority to spend $8 billion over 10 years on Panama Canal sustainability projects
HOUSTON (ICIS)--The Panama Canal Authority (PCA) will invest $8 billion over the next 10 years on projects designed to safeguard its long-term sustainability and to create a logistics hub, officials...
Solvay to cut jobs in Germany, plans to discontinue product lines
LONDON (ICIS)--Solvay plans to discontinue certain product lines at one of its sites in Germany and to completely close another site, affecting a total 140 jobs, the Belgian chemicals company said in...
Europe SAN September contract prices fall for six consecutive months
LONDON (ICIS)--September contract prices have decreased between €20-25/tonne in the Europe styrene acrylonitrile (SAN) market, a mid-point decrease of €22.50/tonne, mainly driven by feedstock...
Higher LNG feedgas demand supports US gas futures
Higher nominations from Sabine Pass lead to uptick in feedgas demand Above-average storage build threatens to erase week of Henry Hub gains Warm weather forecast for remainder of September HOUSTON...
South Korea’s August base oils exports to Americas stay lower
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--South Korea’s base oils exports to the US stayed low in August, extending a trend that coincided with a recent slowdown in shipments from the Middle East to the US. The lower...
Global base oils exports to Middle East fall in August
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Global base oils exports to the Middle East fell in August amid a slowdown in flows from Asia. The slowdown followed a surge in shipments from Asia to the region during the previous...
Europe’s Group II base oils ample supply weighs on lighter grades
LONDON (ICIS)--European Group II base oils faced a longer supply as stocks had built up over the summer, with downside observed on the lightest 150N grade this week. Lower demand met with ample...