Negotiations underway for more Dec ethylene, propylene settlements

Following the initial settlements of ethylene and propylene for December contracts with €45/ton decreases in Europe, players in the region reported that negotiations are still underway for the rest of the market. This is attributed to recent changes in the upstream market after energy prices moved higher.

A West European producer said that they are still negotiating on the December ethylene contract as a buyer. “Sellers are now trying to limit the size of the decrease up to €30/ton upon the recent developments; however, we still aim to finalize the deal with the same size of decrease achieved in the first settlement,” a producer source said.

Crude oil markets have been rather volatile in the past few weeks upon OPEC’s decision to try to limit oil output, which finally came to a conclusion at their Vienna meeting yesterday. Having fallen by almost $2/bbl on Tuesday, January ICE Brent futures surged $4.09/bbl to expire on Wednesday at $50.47 a barrel. Brent for February settlement was much higher at $52.33 a barrel.

Spot naphtha prices in Europe, accordingly, jumped $26/ton on the same day to be reported at $435-440/ton CIF NWE.