LDPE film prices climb to nearly two-year highs in China, SE Asia

PE markets in Asia have witnessed a persistent uptrend in prices of the low-density film grade for the past couple of months, resulting in its typical premium over HDPE and LLDPE film expanding significantly. Data obtained from ChemOrbis Price Index reveal that the weekly average prices of LDPE film in both China and Southeast Asia hit their highest levels in nearly two years.

Tightness, freight rates come to the fore

The double whammy of supply shortages and extreme freight rates continuously encouraged sellers to test LDPE markets with a series of hikes.

During the turnaround season in the Middle East and Asia, LDPE has stood out as the most affected grade. Therefore, import LDPE supply has been persistently short, while availability conditions have been no different inside China. At least two traders attributed their higher pricing to tightness, saying, “LDPE prices are increasing in line with a shortage of supply.”

On top of that, the continuous havoc with ocean shipping has driven up freight charges, which have been passed through to the materials’ prices accordingly. A source at a South Korean producer noted, “The availability remains tight amid maintenance shutdowns. Along with the dearth of supply, skyrocketing shipping costs, which have tripled over the past couple of months, play an important role in the recent uptrend.”



LD leads firmness both inside and outside China

During the week ending on June 14, overall import prices for LDPE film were assessed $10-30/ton higher from the previous week at $1090-1180/ton CIF cash on a CIF, cash basis. While the upswings in offers for Middle Eastern cargoes lost some steam with slight increases of $10/ton, regional suppliers visibly raised their pricing by up to $30/ton.

The uphill movement in domestic prices saw no respite. The range for LDPE film was assessed CNY5-295/ton ($1-41/ton) higher week-on-week at CNY9580-10350/ton ($1170-1264/ton without VAT) on ex-warehouse China, cash including VAT basis. The local prices have increased by roughly 9% since the rising trend kicked off in the beginning of April, ChemOrbis data shows.

Chinese buyers opt for imports, defying shipping issues

Chinese converters appeared to prefer imported LDPE film rather than buying locally, bearing the former’s much lower prices in mind. According to ChemOrbis data, local LDPE prices without VAT were trading $80/ton above CIF offers, while the premium that local HDPE film was carrying over imports stood at $24/ton only.

A trader reported, “The domestic prices of LDPE film are currently far outperforming imports, so buyers show more willingness to purchase imported materials. Meanwhile, they have still preferred to buy local HDPE and LLDPE film.”

Plus, in their all-out effort to minimize the impact of long lead times and shipping challenges, Chinese buyers shifted their focus to nearby Asian sources, further underpinning regional sellers’ firm stance.

Delta between LD and HD film over $200 in SEA

Southeast Asia also experienced the same pattern, with import LDPE film prices climbing beyond the $1300/ton threshold. The price range for all origins rose by $40/ton on both ends from the previous week to be assessed at $1220-1320/ton CIF SEA, cash.

This, combined with HDPE’s weakest performance among the three main PE film grades, made it far behind LDPE. Just one month after LDPE traded more than $100/ton above HDPE in mid-May, the premium has climbed above $200/ton to stand at the highest point of $205/ton since August 2022, according to ChemOrbis data.



As a side note, offers for Malaysian-origin LDPE film posted three-digit increases of $120/ton in Vietnam over the past month, with the latest levels standing at $1320-1340/ton. A shipment changed hands at $1320/ton CIF Vietnam.