North American PVC resin prices have moved up an average of 1 cent per pound since July 1, in part because of weather-related production outages.
A major PVC resin plant operated by Shintech Inc. in Freeport, Texas, was down for three days before restarting on July 11. That plant and others in the area were shut down as a precaution when Hurricane Beryl brought heavy rains and 90 MPH wind gusts to the Houston area beginning July 8.
The recent drought in Mexico also has affected North American PVC production. Mexican officials said earlier this month that drought conditions had ended, but PVC maker Orbia lost several weeks of production at a major PVC resin and compound plant in Altamira because of lack of water.
The Orbia plant has annual production capacity of more than 1 billion pounds of PVC resin. It also makes flexible and rigid PVC compounds, as well as plasticizers.
The July 1-cent price hike on PVC matches a similar increase seen in June. Prices for the material now have increased in five of the last six months for a total increase of 8 cents in that period.
"Orders are strong and production is tight," an industry source said of current PVC market conditions.
A slight improvement in U.S. housing starts also played a role in the July PVC resin hike. Housing starts for June came in at an annual rate of 1.45 million, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. That number was up almost 4 percent vs. May, but down almost 3 percent vs. the same month in 2023. Construction activity accounts for about 60 percent of North American PVC demand.
