Indonesia’s PP market sustains firming despite unsupportive demand

In Indonesia, both import and local PP prices witnessed additional hikes this week on the back of higher spot propylene prices, strong energy markets as well as PP futures in China, although demand remained unsupportive amidst year-end lull.

As can be seen in the below graph created by ChemOrbis Price Wizard, import PP prices has been steadily rising since mid-November and they have recently hit a three-month high on a weekly average basis.



In the country’s import market, initial January PP prices started to be announced with rollovers to increases last week. A Malaysian producer applied rollovers on its homo-PP raffia offers for January while lifting its prices by $10-30/ton for other PP grades.

A Southeast Asian producer also announced its January PP prices to Indonesia with $20-30/ton increases from December.

Starting from early December, local PP prices followed import prices higher despite slow demand and the lack of any supply concerns. A source from a local producer remarked, “PP consumption is quite slow in Indonesia nowadays.”

In the local market, an Indonesian producer increased its PP offers for the third time since the beginning of December. The producers’ current PP prices indicate cumulative hikes of $30/ton for homo-PP grades and PPRC injection, $31/ton for PPBC injection and $21/ton BOPP when compared to early December.

A local trader commented, “Demand is not supporting the current price trend for the moment. However, we believe that PP prices still have room for some additional increases over the near term as the upstream market remains strong while demand is likely to revive following the end of the New Year holidays.”