Industry News
Chemical Industry News
Canada chemical plants struggle as capacity utilization plunges in July
TORONTO (ICIS)--Canada’s chemical industry capacity utilization rate fell to 69.4% in July – down 6.2 points from 75.6% in June, according to estimates by federal agency Statistics Canada...
Alpek polyester announces price increase on US PET on sustained cost pressures
HOUSTON (ICIS) – Alpek polyester announced a price increase for US polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and recycled polyethylene terephthalate (R-PET), effective 1 October, according to a customer...
How is carbon dioxide being turned into food in the lab?
Butter made from captured CO2 is the latest food item to make headlines, highlighting growing interest in this field
Two workers killed in fire at fertiliser plant in Gujarat, India
A second fire the same day in Gujarat was tackled without casualties
The simple machine that visualised atomic orbitals
In 1931, Harvey Elliott White developed a device that traced out the shapes of electron clouds by approximating solutions to the Schrödinger equation
Researchers analyse future European energy demand for battery cell production
Europe accounts for around 25 percent of global electric vehicle sales. Despite the high demand, only around 6.8 percent of the energy required for cell production is currently supplied in Europe. Most of the energy
New method improves the accuracy of machine-learned potentials for simulating catalysts
Catalysts play an indispensable role in modern manufacturing. More than 80% of all manufactured products, from pharmaceuticals to plastics, rely on catalytic processes at some stage of production. Transition metals, in particular, stand out as
Indonesia’s central bank lowers interest rate for third straight meeting
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Bank Indonesia (BI) lowered its key interest rate - the seven-day reverse repurchase rate – by 25 basis points (bps) to 4.75% on 17 September, the third consecutive cut in recent...
Plant status: China’s Yulong Petrochemical raises new MEG unit runs to above 70%
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: Yulong Petrochemical Location: Longkou, Shandong, China Product: Monoethylene glycol (MEG) Capacity (tonnes/year): 1 million Event start:...
analytica USA celebrated its premiere on the US market
The first edition of analytica USA took place in Columbus, Ohio from September 10–12, 2025, with 270 exhibitors from 19 countries. The share of international exhibitors was 35 percent. A total of 2,222 participants from
NYMEX: US gas futures hold steady on flat feedgas, routine weather outlooks
US natural gas eased slightly on 17 September as steady feedgas nominations and routine weather outlooks kept the market rangebound The October 2025 Henry Hub contract on NYMEX settled at...
Brazil’s central bank holds Selic rate at 15% amid persistent inflation concerns
SAO PAULO (ICIS)--Brazil's central bank on Wednesday kept the benchmark Selic rate at 15%, a 19-year high, citing un-anchored inflation expectations and heightened global uncertainty requiring...
US September MMA remains competitive in bearish market
HOUSTON (ICIS)--US methyl methacrylate (MMA) is muted as Q3 wraps up with no major changes to supply and demand. Prices are competitive, meanwhile, in a well-supplied market. Downward pressure was...
US gasoline supplies fall as demand, refinery run rates rise
HOUSTON (ICIS)--US gasoline supplies dropped during the week ended 12 September, due in large part to an increase in demand and drop in refinery utilization rates. Gasoline stocks declined week on...
INSIGHT: Fed pivots to weak job market from elevated inflation
HOUSTON (ICIS)--The US Federal Reserve has decided that the nation's weakening job market is a bigger threat to the economy than inflation, leading it to lower its benchmark interest while prices...
CRUDE SUMMARY: Crude benchmarks edge lower as market awaits US Fed interest rate decision
All eyes on US Federal Reserve announcement about interest rates Latest inventory figures paint consistent picture of falls in crude, gasoline inventories Potential disruption of Russian supplies...
US cuts interest rate by quarter point, eyes two more in 2025
HOUSTON (ICIS)--The US Federal Reserve (Fed) lowered its benchmark interest rate by a quarter point, to 4.00-4.25%, amid a weakening job market and elevated inflation, and it expects to make two more...
Brazil’s Petrobras aims to start up fertilizers plants formerly leased to Unigel by year-end
SAP PAULO (ICIS)--Petrobras aims to start up its Bahia and Sergipe nitrogen fertilizer factories formerly leased to beleaguered chemicals producer Unigel by year-end, the Brazilian state-owned energy...
Strong nuclear weighs on French power front month but weather could shift outlook
Wide French power supply margins likely to pressure front month, while gas market movement could drive support on neighbouring markets The French October '25 is expected to remain at a discount to...
N American weekly chemical rail traffic rises 8.2% year on year
HOUSTON (ICIS)--Following a 2.2% decline the week before, North American chemical rail traffic rose 8.2% year on year to 49,438 railcar loadings for the week ended 13 September, according to freight...