Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Sustainable Plastics
  • Rubber News
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Processor News
    • Suppliers
    • More News
    • Digital Edition
    • End Markets
    • Special Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Videos
    • Podcasts
    • Injection Molding
    • Blow Molding
    • Film & Sheet
    • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
    • Rotomolding
    • Thermoforming
    • Recycling
    • Machinery
    • Materials
    • Molds/Tooling
    • Product news
    • Design
    • K Show
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Sustainability
    • Public Policy
    • Material Insights Videos
    • Numbers that Matter
    • Automotive
    • Packaging
    • Medical
    • Consumer Products
    • Construction
    • Notable Leaders in Sustainability
    • Processor of the Year
    • Best Places to Work
    • Women Breaking the Mold
    • Rising Stars
    • Diversity
    • Most Interesting Social Media Accounts in Plastics
  • Opinion
    • The Plastics Blog
    • Kickstart
    • One Good Resin
    • Pellets and Politics
    • 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
    • Plastics News Executive Forum
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Plastics Caps + Closures: A Global Online Event
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
    • Bioplastics Live
    • Numbers that Matter Live
    • PFAS Live
    • Plastics in Politics Live
    • PN Live: Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Polymer Points Live
    • Sustainable Plastics Live
    • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
    • Plastics in Healthcare Library
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
  • 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
  • Resin Prices
    • Resin Prices Overview
    • Commodity Thermoplastics
    • High Temperature Thermoplastics
    • Engineering Thermoplastics
    • Recycled Plastics
    • Thermosets
    • Europe - Virgin
    • Europe - Recycled
    • Europe - Feedstock
  • Custom
    • Sponsored Content
    • LS Mtron 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
July 07, 2016 02:00 AM

Construction sends PVC prices up; solid PS, PP prices slide

Frank Esposito
Senior Staff Reporter
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print

    Strong construction activity sent North American PVC resin prices up in June, while imports sent regional polypropylene prices down.

    Regional prices for solid polystyrene resin also slipped in June, resulting from a combination of lower demand and falling feedstock prices.

    June PVC prices ticked up an average of 2 cents per pound, marking the third time in four months that prices for that material have increased. Prices had been flat in May after climbing a total of 6 cents per pound in March and April.

    An improving housing market has boosted U.S./Canadian PVC demand and paved the way for these price hikes. U.S. housing starts in May were at an annual rate of 1.16 million units. That's up more than 9 percent vs. the same month in 2015.

    The U.S. housing market continues to recover from the recession of 2008-09. Housing starts peaked at more than 2 million per year before the recession, but plummeted to around 500,000 when the market collapsed. The market bounced back above 1 million starts by 2014 and continued to grow almost 11 percent in 2015 to reach 1.112 million units.

    Through May, U.S./Canadian PVC sales were up 8.6 percent, according to the American Chemistry Council. Domestic sales growth of almost 5 percent was boosted by a gain of almost 18 percent in export sales.

    PVC's flagship rigid pipe and tubing end market saw sales growth of 7 percent in the first five months of 2016. Sales of PVC into extruded windows and doors soared more than 17 percent and sales into fencing and decking mushroomed by more than 28 percent in the same comparison.

    Construction-related uses accounted for almost 64 percent of U.S./Canadian PVC sales for the five-month period.

    PP continues slide

    Regional PP prices continued their slide in June, dropping another 4 cents per pound on average. Some buyers saw drops of 3 cents for the month, with others experiencing a 5-cent reduction. These amounts were in combination with the amount of decrease they had seen in previous months.

    The June move is the fourth straight monthly decline seen by PP. Prices for the material had slid a total of 5 cents in March-April-May, with buyers seeing different amounts at different times. Growing supplies of PP imported from outside of North America have caused regional suppliers to drop their prices to meet competitive situations.

    PP makers ExxonMobil Chemical Co. of Houston and Formosa Plastics Corp. USA of Livingston, N.J., had pre-announced PP price decreases for June in late May.

    Import materials have found a home in North America as the region's PP production has struggled to keep up with demand. This is partly the result of large amounts of PP production capacity being eliminated when demand fell during the recession. Operating rates for North American PP plants now are in the high 90s.

    North American PP demand growth has been moderate in the first five months of 2016. Overall sales were up only 0.5 percent, as domestic growth of 1.5 percent was weakened by a 32 percent drop in export sales.

    High regional prices have decimated exports of PP from North America in recent years. As a result, exports accounted for barely 2 percent of total 2016 sales through May.

    For solid PS, the 2-cent June drop continues a bumpy pattern which saw prices flat in May after increasing by 5 cents in April. The June drop was connected to a 4 percent price decline for benzene feedstock, which is used to make styrene monomer. Benzene prices had seen a similar 4 percent drop in May, but PS makers were able to keep prices flat.

    On the demand front, solid PS struggled a bit in the first five months of 2016, with sales falling 1.3 percent. Much of the sales decline came from reduced sales to resellers/compounders (down 10 percent) and into the consumer/institutional end market (down 7 percent).

    Solid PS sales markets showing gains in North America through May included food packaging/food service (up almost 2 percent) and electrical/electronic (up 5 percent).

    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    Tennessee-based insulation maker adding equipment, jobs
    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
    An 8,000-ton dream for Milacron, 20/20 Custom Molded Plastics
    2
    US Merchants opens curtain on growing injection molding operations
    3
    Report: Tekni-Plex may be for sale
    4
    Rising costs prompt delay in Corpus Christi PET plant construction
    5
    Plastics processors face automation needs, sustainability demands
    SIGN UP FOR OUR FREE NEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Find more newsletters at plasticsnews.com/newsletters.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    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
    • Tire Business
    • Urethanes Technology
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Copyright © 1996-2023. 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
        • K Show
        • Mergers & Acquisitions
        • Sustainability
        • Public Policy
        • Material Insights Videos
        • Numbers that Matter
      • Digital Edition
      • End Markets
        • Automotive
        • Packaging
        • Medical
        • Consumer Products
        • Construction
      • Special Reports
        • Notable Leaders in Sustainability
        • Processor of the Year
        • Best Places to Work
        • Women Breaking the Mold
        • Rising Stars
        • Diversity
        • Most Interesting Social Media Accounts in Plastics
      • Newsletters
      • Videos
      • Podcasts
    • Opinion
      • The Plastics Blog
      • Kickstart
      • One Good Resin
      • Pellets and Politics
      • 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 Caps + Closures: A Global Online Event
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
      • Industry Events
      • Injection Molding & Design Expo
      • Livestreams/Webinars
      • Editorial Livestreams
        • Bioplastics Live
        • Numbers that Matter Live
        • PFAS Live
        • Plastics in Politics Live
        • PN Live: Mergers and Acquisitions
        • Polymer Points 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
    • 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
    • Resin Prices
      • Resin Prices Overview
      • Commodity Thermoplastics
      • High Temperature Thermoplastics
      • Engineering Thermoplastics
      • Recycled Plastics
      • Thermosets
      • Europe - Virgin
      • Europe - Recycled
      • Europe - Feedstock
    • Custom
      • Sponsored Content
      • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
      • Conair Sponsored Content
      • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
      • ENGEL Sponsored Content
      • White Papers
      • Classifieds
        • Place an Ad
        • Sign up for Early Classified