Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Sustainable Plastics
  • Rubber News
Subscribe
  • Login
  • Register
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Processor News
    • Suppliers
    • More News
    • Digital Edition
    • End Markets
    • Special Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Resin pricing news
    • Videos
    • Injection Molding
    • Blow Molding
    • Film & Sheet
    • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
    • Rotomolding
    • Thermoforming
    • Recycling
    • Machinery
    • Materials
    • Molds/Tooling
    • Product news
    • Design
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Sustainability
    • Public Policy
    • Material Insights Videos
    • Numbers that Matter
    • Automotive
    • Packaging
    • Medical
    • Consumer Products
    • Construction
    • CEO Issue
    • Diversity
    • Best Places to Work
      • 2022 winners
    • Processor of the Year
    • Rising Stars
    • Women Breaking the Mold
  • Opinion
    • The Plastics Blog
    • Kickstart
    • One Good Resin
    • BRICS and Plastics
    • All Things Data
    • Viewpoint
    • From Pillar to Post
    • Perspective
    • Mailbag
    • Fake Plastic Trees
  • Shop Floor
    • Blending
    • Compounding
    • Drying
    • Injection Molding
    • Purging
    • Robotics
    • Size Reduction
    • Structural Foam
    • Tooling
    • Training
  • Events
    • Plastics News Events
    • Industry Events
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Livestreams/Webinars
    • Editorial Livestreams
    • Ask the Expert
    • Plastics News Events Library
    • Processor of the Year submissions
    • Plastics News Executive Forum
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Plastics News Caps & Closures
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
    • Plastics in Automotive
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Reuters Responsible Business Europe 2022
    • Reifenhäuser Technologies Livestreams
    • Polymer Points Live
    • Numbers that Matter Live
    • Plastics in Politics Live
    • Sustainable Plastics Live
    • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
    • Plastics in Healthcare Library
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
  • Resin Prices
    • All Resins
    • Commodity TPs
    • High Temp TPs
    • ETPs
    • Thermosets
    • Recycled Plastics
    • Historic Commodity Thermoplastics
    • Historic High Temp Thermoplastics
    • Historic Engineering Thermoplastics
    • Historic Thermosets
    • Historic Recycled Plastics
  • Rankings & Data
    • Injection Molders
    • Blow Molders
    • Film Sheet
    • Thermoformers
    • Pipe Profile Tubing
    • Rotomolders
    • Mold/Toolmakers
    • LSR Processors
    • Recyclers
    • Compounders - List
    • Association - List
    • Plastic Lumber - List
    • All
  • Directory
  • Custom
    • Sponsored Content
    • Conair Sponsored Content
    • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
    • ENGEL Sponsored Content
    • White Papers
    • Classifieds
    • Place an Ad
    • Sign up for Early Classified
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
November 18, 2013 01:00 AM

Experts discuss markets for nylon, polycarbonate, PS and ABS

Frank Esposito
Senior Staff Reporter
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print
    IHS Inc.
    Paul Blanchard

    CHICAGO ‒ Global nylon resin markets are doing OK, but challenges remain for polystyrene, polycarbonate and ABS.

    An improved automotive market has helped drive demand for both nylon 6 and 6/6 resins, IHS Inc. nylon market analyst Paul Blanchard said at the Global Plastics Summit, held Nov. 4-6 in Chicago. Automotive remains the largest end market for both types of nylon. Film is the second-largest market for nylon 6, while electrical/electronic ranks second for nylon 6/6.

    High prices for benzene feedstock – spurred in part by the industry's switch to lighter natural gas-based feedstocks – are expected to put pressure on nylon and other resins in the years ahead, according to Blanchard. Benzene prices "aren't expected to come down dramatically," he said.

    The global nylon 6 resin market remains splintered, with BASF SE leading the field with a market share of only eight percent. More than two billion pounds of capacity are set to be added in China in 2014 and 2015, which is more than the market needs, according to Blanchard. Lanxess AG also will add nylon 6 capacity in Antwerp, Belgium in 2016.

    Globally, nylon 6 demand is expected to increase from 2.3 percent per year from 2008-12 to 3.5 percent from 2013-18. Pricing, however, has been on a downward trend since 2011 and is expected to be flat to slightly down in 2014, Blanchard said.

    The global nylon 6/6 market is less splintered, with Ascend leading the way with a 22 percent market share. Invista also has a 16 percent stake in the field. Capacity additions for nylon 6/6 are less than in nylon 6, with only about 440 million pounds expected to be added in 2015-16.

    Nylon 6/6 pricing is on pace to be flat to slightly down in 2014, Blanchard said. Demand for that material is expected to reise from 2.6 per year from 2008-13 to 3.6 percent from 2013-18.

    There's also been some recent competition between nylon 6 and 6/6 in some applications, such as auto air intake manifolds, he added. Polypropylene also is competing with both nylons. PP makers "see some real opportunities where nylon is overspecified," Blanchard said.

    The well-documented struggles of the PS market are expected to continue, according to IHS PS market analyst Priya Ravindranath. High benzene prices have made PS less competitive vs. other resins, while environmental challenges have led the material to be banned in some areas.

    "There's been a significant [PS] price increase in the last decade, along with a steady decline in demand," Ravindranath said. Global PS demand averaged a decline of almost 1 percent per year from 2003-13.

    High prices and low benzene supplies in North America will lead to benzene imports there increasing by 30 percent by 2018, making prices much more sensitive to supply disruption, she added. Global benzene prices are expected to remain in the $4-$5 per gallon range in the near future, price levels that are high by historical standards.

    And even though PS costs have climbed by more than 60 percent since 2009, Ravindranath said there's only been a slight increase in the profit margins of PS makers.

    Looking ahead, she said global PS demand should improve to two percent per year from 2013-18, although that level is below global GDP growth expectations. PS demand in packaging also is expected to grow almost one percent per year in that period.

    Global PS operating rates are set to be between 65-70 percent, with North American PS operating rates higher at 75-80 percent – in spite of the region having more than 1.3 billion pounds of excess capacity.

    "The reinvestment economics aren't there" for North American PS, Ravindranath said, adding that the PS market doesn't benefit from increased supplies of shale gas.

    Global markets for PC and ABS are awash in excess capacity, with most of that material located in Asia, IHS PC/ABS market analyst David Gee said.

    Asia – which accounts for almost 60 percent of global PC demand – is adding almost 2 billion pounds of new capacity through 2017. That's more than what's needed to handle global PC demand growth, which is pegged at 4.5 percent from 2013-18.

    Global PC operating rates in that period are expected to be 70-80 percent, although Gee said that some new projects could be delayed because of the large amount of new capacity coming on. In North America, new global capacity has made it difficult for PC makers to raise prices. Prices there are expected to be roughly flat in 2014, Gee added, with more Asian import material coming in and fewer PC exports going to China.

    In the global ABS market – with about 70 percent of demand in Asia – total demand of almost 16 billion pounds is well outpaced by total capacity of almost 22 billion pounds, Gee said. Low single digit demand growth is expected in 2014.

    North American ABS profit margins are expected to remain stable in 2014, with prices declining slightly as more foreign material with lower raw material costs becomes available, he added.

    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    Polymer Points Live
    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Do you have an opinion about this story? Do you have some thoughts you'd like to share with our readers? Plastics News would love to hear from you. Email your letter to Editor at [email protected]

    Most Popular
    1
    Material Insights: Shell plant nears completion; Mitsubishi closes Detroit-area compounding plant
    2
    Global shipping snarls likely to last for some time
    3
    20/20 adds Southern exposure with Vantage acquisition
    4
    Shell nearing completion of Pennsylvania PE facility
    5
    Mitsubishi Chemical closes Michigan compounding plant
    SIGN UP FOR TO RECEIVE THESE EMAILS AND ENEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Subscribe today

    Subscribe to Plastics News

    Subscribe now
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram

    Plastics News covers the business of the global plastics industry. We report news, gather data and deliver timely information that provides our readers with a competitive advantage.

    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI 48207-2997

    Customer Service:
    877-320-1723

    Resources
    • About
    • Staff
    • Editorial Calendar
    • Media Kit
    • Data Store
    • Digital Edition
    • Custom Content
    • People
    • Contact
    • Careers
    • Sitemap
    Related Crain Publications
    • Sustainable Plastics
    • Rubber News
    • Urethanes Technology
    • European Rubber Journal
    • Tire Business
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Copyright © 1996-2022. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Processor News
        • Injection Molding
        • Blow Molding
        • Film & Sheet
        • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
        • Rotomolding
        • Thermoforming
        • Recycling
      • Suppliers
        • Machinery
        • Materials
        • Molds/Tooling
        • Product news
        • Design
      • More News
        • Mergers & Acquisitions
        • Sustainability
        • Public Policy
        • Material Insights Videos
        • Numbers that Matter
      • Digital Edition
      • End Markets
        • Automotive
        • Packaging
        • Medical
        • Consumer Products
        • Construction
      • Special Reports
        • CEO Issue
        • Diversity
        • Best Places to Work
          • 2022 winners
        • Processor of the Year
        • Rising Stars
        • Women Breaking the Mold
      • Newsletters
      • Resin pricing news
      • Videos
    • Opinion
      • The Plastics Blog
      • Kickstart
      • One Good Resin
      • BRICS and Plastics
      • All Things Data
      • Viewpoint
      • From Pillar to Post
      • Perspective
      • Mailbag
      • Fake Plastic Trees
    • Shop Floor
      • Blending
      • Compounding
      • Drying
      • Injection Molding
      • Purging
      • Robotics
      • Size Reduction
      • Structural Foam
      • Tooling
      • Training
    • Events
      • Plastics News Events
        • Plastics News Executive Forum
        • Injection Molding & Design Expo
        • Plastics News Caps & Closures
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
        • Plastics in Automotive
      • Industry Events
        • Injection Molding & Design Expo
      • Injection Molding & Design Expo
      • Livestreams/Webinars
        • Reuters Responsible Business Europe 2022
        • Reifenhäuser Technologies Livestreams
      • Editorial Livestreams
        • Polymer Points Live
        • Numbers that Matter Live
        • Plastics in Politics Live
        • Sustainable Plastics Live
      • Ask the Expert
      • Plastics News Events Library
        • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
        • Plastics in Healthcare Library
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
      • Processor of the Year submissions
    • Resin Prices
      • All Resins
      • Commodity TPs
        • Historic Commodity Thermoplastics
      • High Temp TPs
        • Historic High Temp Thermoplastics
      • ETPs
        • Historic Engineering Thermoplastics
      • Thermosets
        • Historic Thermosets
      • Recycled Plastics
        • Historic Recycled Plastics
    • Rankings & Data
      • Injection Molders
      • Blow Molders
      • Film Sheet
      • Thermoformers
      • Pipe Profile Tubing
      • Rotomolders
      • Mold/Toolmakers
      • LSR Processors
      • Recyclers
      • Compounders - List
      • Association - List
      • Plastic Lumber - List
      • All
    • Directory
    • Custom
      • Sponsored Content
      • Conair Sponsored Content
      • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
      • ENGEL Sponsored Content
      • White Papers
      • Classifieds
        • Place an Ad
        • Sign up for Early Classified