Industry News
Chemical Industry News
WEEKLY GAS OUTLOOK: US cold spell to keep European gas prices supported in week 5
LONDON (ICIS)—Significantly cold weather in the US that has the potential to limit LNG exports to Europe could continue to keep EU spot-dated contracts supported in week 5. Moreover, decreasing...
Morocco interactive fertilizer trade flow map January-November 2025
LONDON (ICIS)--Morocco’s Office des Changes has released fertilizer trade data for January-November 2025. Select a product from the drop-down menu...
China NBA to draw further support from tight supply, pre-Lunar New Year restocking
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--China’s n-butanol (NBA) prices have been rising after hitting a trough on 17 November 2025, as constrained supply sparked a rally. This momentum is likely to sustain on...
German THE Q4 2025 OTC liquidity 36% above 2019-2023 average as curve trading takes up larger share
THE OTC volumes totaled 736.95TWh, around 36% above the Q4 2019–2023 average of 542.50TWh Curve products made up around 96% of all OTC volumes, while prompt fell to 4%, below the typical 6.9% Q4...
Plant status: Orlen plans April turnaround on EG at Plock, Poland – sources
LONDON (ICIS)--Here is a plant status report: Name: Orlen Location: Plock, Poland Product: Ethylene glycols (EG) Capacity (tonnes/year): 85,000 Event start: April Event finish: June Reason:...
Romanian government plans to stick by 1 April gas market deregulation deadline, traders uncertain
Market deregulation may be delayed if spot prices continue to rise Traders uncertain about stocks purchased at regulated prices Up to 600 million cubic meters may be rolled forward to next heating...
India fertilizer interactive trade flow map January-November 2025
LONDON (ICIS)--The Indian Ministry of Commerce & Industry has released fertilizer trade data for January-November 2025. Please choose a product from the drop-down menu...
Europe Q1 TiO2 price hike efforts help to stabilise levels, rises prove difficult
LONDON (ICIS)--Europe titanium dioxide contract prices are showing signs of stabilising in Q1, after two consecutive quarters of price drops. A flurry of separate price rise initiatives from major...
China interactive fertilizer trade flow map 2025
LONDON (ICIS)--Fertilizer import and export data for 2025 has been released by China Customs...
Europe glycerine spot prices rise on supply limitations
LONDON (ICIS)--Ongoing supply constraints sent European crude 80% and refined glycerine spot prices higher this week, as suppliers opted to prioritize existing volumes into contractual arrangements...
MOVES: Nobian appoints new CFO
LONDON (ICIS)--Nobian has appointed Thorsten Krekels as its new chief financial officer (CFO), effective 1 February, the Netherlands-based chlor-alkali producer and salt supplier said in a statement...
China’s average PTA plants’ run rate flat on stable operations
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--China’s purified terephthalic acid (PTA) plants have posted an unchanged average operating rate of 77% during the week ended 23 January, due to stable unit operations. Sichuan...
Europe January PX contract price up €30/tonne on stronger Asian market
LONDON (ICIS)--The European paraxylene (PX) contract price for January has risen by €30/tonne month on month amid higher prices in the influential Asian market. The increase has been partly...
China’s average PX plants’ run rate drops on ZPC’s operation cuts
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--China’s para-xylene (PX) plants have posted a lower average operating rate, because Zhejiang Petroleum & Chemical (ZPC) trimmed operations due to upstream maintenance. In the...
China acetic acid run rate up on plant restart
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--China acetic acid plants’ average run rate rose as Yaraco restarted its plant and Kingboard resumed normal production at No 2 plant. The average run rate stood at 82% in the week...
HCl prices across Europe edge downwards
LONDON (ICIS)--Hydrochloric acid (HCl) prices across Europe have fallen slightly on both the upper and lower ends in January, on the back of lengthy supply. HCl availability tightened from mid-2025...
China’s December phenol imports fall on decreased arrivals from Saudi Arabia
SINGAPORE (ICIS)--China imported a total of 19,217 tonnes of phenol in December 2025, down by 11.6% month on month, according to the ICIS Supply & Demand Database, due to decreased arrivals from...
Was the ‘Baghdad battery’ really two cells?
A new study suggests it had an ‘outer’ cell that reacted with air to supply a higher voltage. But was it a battery at all?
AI research tools benefit individual scientists but may slow scientific progress
There may be a conflict between personal and collective gain in the sciences
Researchers use failed batteries to fight “forever chemicals”
Researchers in the lab of Asst. Prof. Chibueze Amanchukwu at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering (UChicago PME) have spent three years looking for failure, scouring the academic literature for tales of battery breakdowns