Asian paraxylene - Downtrend continues through the
week- CFR Taiwan/China market plunges $171.50-200.50/mt
on week- Spread of PX-MX tops $100-120/mtThe downtrend in Asian paraxylene continued through
July 15, despite the fact that Asia-US arbitrage was continuing and China's
slow downstream demand. Paraxylene CFR Taiwan/China marked plunged to a
new low after more than five months. It fell from $171.50-200.50/mt to
$1,020-1,050/mt on July 15. Paraxylene's sharp fall also pushed the spread
to C+F Japan naphtha down to $269.17-290.50/mt (down $104.33/mt week-on-week). This
is due to weakening gasoline demand and reflects the bearish fundamentals of
the large-scale cutbacks in China's polyester industry. After days of
slow activity, trading liquidity improved on the last day for August arrivals.
However, selling interest outstripped buying on Market on Close. The
highest bid for August Asia-origin arrivals was $1,051-1,070/mt from...