Styrene market soars; crude benzene prices in September remain promising

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Is this market surge the result of buildup over too long a period? Or a retaliatory rebound? Looking at the pure benzene market, the continuous rise in the electronic trading prices of styrene, coupled with the uncertainty regarding the impact of the hurricanes in the United States on chemical products, has fueled speculation around styrene. The prices of aromatic hydrocarbons abroad have risen sharply, and the price of pure benzene in Asia has also increased. Sinopec raised its listed price to 6,400 yuan per ton. All these positive factors have pushed up the price of pure benzene. It is possible that the shutdown of all refining facilities in the Corpus Christi area and half of the refining facilities in the Houston area could lead to a shortage of ethylene, which in turn might affect styrene prices. As a result, the electronic trading prices of styrene have been rising in recent days, with traders being quite optimistic about the market, which has contributed to higher pricing for pure benzene. However, considering the buying sentiment in the pure benzene market, purchases remain cautious, especially since it is mainly traders who are making purchases rather than manufacturers; this indicates that there is no significant increase in demand from end-users, and thus the market lacks sufficient support. The price of styrene rose by 1,200 yuan per ton on a weekly basis, while pure benzene only rose by 300 yuan per ton. Therefore, caution is needed when attempting to buy pure benzene at higher prices. Yet, due to the speculation surrounding the hurricanes in the United States, the market enthusiasm for pure benzene will likely remain high in the short term. As the raw material inventories of downstream enterprises using pure benzene are depleted, it is expected that the willingness of these enterprises to place orders will increase next week, leading to a slight improvement in demand for pure benzene. As a result, pure benzene prices are likely to remain at relatively high levels next week. 　　Regarding crude benzene, perhaps it had been suppressed for too long, and the amount that was released exceeded my expectations by a large margin. At the beginning of the week, the market remained rational, with no rush to buy goods. However, over the weekend, the continuous rise in the prices on the styrene electronic trading platform, along with the increase in spot prices, boosted merchants’ confidence; many believed that there was a possibility of further price increases in the pure benzene market, which led to businesses rushing to purchase hydrogenated benzene. Furthermore, as some benzene hydrogenation plants resumed operations one after another and raw material inventories were low, there was an increase in purchases of crude benzene as a raw material. Prices have risen significantly, leading to some chaos in the market; the calmness seen in the previous week is completely gone. Of course, there is speculation in the market, but this sharp rise is mainly due to the increases in the Tangshan area, indicating that traders have fairly positive expectations for future prices. Moreover, with the market remaining stagnant for nearly half a year, businesses are treating this as a \"lifeline,\" with a strong desire for prices to rise and hope that the market will see an upward trend. As for the current market situation, coking plant owners have raised prices by a somewhat larger margin this week, exceeding expectations; therefore, although the outlook is positive for next week, the room for further price increases will be limited. However, the impact of the hurricanes in the United States remains, and it will be evident over a longer period, so there is still reason to be optimistic about market conditions in September.