PP, solid PS prices continue on trend

North American prices for polypropylene and solid polystyrene resins both have increased since Nov. 1.

Regional PP prices moved up 5 cents per pound, as producers gained 3 cents of margin improvement on top of a 2-cent increase in prices for polymer-grade propylene (PGP) feedstock, according to market sources contacted by Plastics News.

The November PP hike marks the sixth consecutive month that prices have moved up for that material. Those six increases now have totaled 19.5 cents.

Market sources said that supplies of both PP and PGP currently are tight in the region. One source said that supplies of impact copolymer PP grades are "extremely tight, if not short."

Two PP suppliers in the region are running at reduced rates, either because of mechanical issues or difficulties in sourcing enough PGP, sources added.

"Things have tightened up again," said Scott Newell, a PP market analyst with Resin Technology Inc. in Fort Worth, Texas. "Demand was very strong in October, with multiyear highs for production and demand."

Newell added that North American PP inventories have been drawn down by almost 400 million pounds in the past five months. "A lot of market dynamics have changed and look different than they did three or four weeks ago," he said.

North American PP demand has been flat to slightly negative so far in 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic helped sales in medical supplies, personal protective equipment and packaging but had a negative effect on demand in automotive and in some durable goods applications.

In the solid PS market, prices have moved up 2 cents per pound since Nov. 1 after being flat for two consecutive months. Prior to that, prices had increased a total of 7 cents in the three-month June-August period.

The November PS hike was impacted by higher prices for benzene feedstock, which is used to make styrene monomer. Benzene prices were up 14 cents to $1.55 per gallon for November, an increase of almost 10 percent vs. the prior month.

Price movement for PS in 2020 has been driven by feedstocks and not by demand for the material. The 2020 PS market "hasn't been anything to write home about," according to Phil Karig, managing director of Mathelin Bay Associates in St. Louis.

"The impact of COVID-19 has certainly affected foodservice demand for disposable PS packaging, while on the retail side, grocery takeout demand, for example, has been better," he said.

But in spite of growth in those end markets, Karig said that overall PS demand is down in 2020 and could be down in 2021 as well, although foodservice demand could continue to improve.