Polypropylene (PP) prices in Europe finished last week flat, according to Polymerupdate, with contract homopolymer injection grades unchanged at €810/tonne FD Northwest Europe and copolymer steady at €850/tonne FD Northwest Europe. In the spot market, PP prices were also flat, with FD Northwest Europe homopolymer grades at €720/tonne and copolymer prices at €770/tonne FD Northwest Europe. In plant news, Dow Europe reportedly restarted its Wesseling, Germany PP unit last week. The 195,000 tonnes/yr line had been shutdown in early May for a fortnight-long maintenance turnaround.

Low-density polyethylene (LDPE) general-purpose contracts were flat, with Germany holding to €910/tonne FD, and prices in Italy at €905/tonne FD. In France, LDPE contract prices stayed at €890/tonne FD. LDPE spot prices were also unchanged from the week before at €760-€770/tonne FD Northwest Europe. Regional demand was subdued, but export inquiries for LDPE were ample, with attractive markets for European LDPE in China and North Africa.

Linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) contracts were also steady, with FD Northwest Europe prices at €890-€900/tonne. In the spot market, LLDPE prices were flat at €780/tonne FD Northwest Europe. Buyers are pressuring LLDPE sellers to drop their prices, but the fact that many European sellers had already successfully achieved their volume targets in spite of subdued buying helped them defend their prices.

Polystyrene (PS) contract prices firmed in Europe last week, with general-purpose PS at €1015/tonne FD Northwest Europe compared to €995/tonne FD a week earlier. High-impact PS contracts rose to €1065/tonne FD Northwest Europe, compared €1045/tonne FD Northwest Europe. In the spot market, PS rose to €810/tonne FD Northwest Europe for general-purpose grades, with high-impact prices at €860/tonne FD Northwest Europe.

Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) general-purpose and natural-grade contracts were flat, with prices holding at €1195-€1205/tonne FD Northwest Europe. In the spot market, ABS prices fell to €1050-€1060/tonne FD Northwest Europe. Sellers attributed the drop to poor demand in regional markets, particularly construction and automotive.

Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) suspension-grade contracts were largely unchanged, with prices in Germany at €715/tonne FD, and contract settlements in Italy at €705/tonne FD. In the spot market, PVC was unchanged at €570/tonne FD Northwest Europe. Most PVC sellers polled by Polymerupdate claimed their offer prices were at €600/tonne FD Northwest Europe and higher.

Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottle grades were assessed steady at €1080-€1100/tonne FD Northwest Europe. Compared to the April contract settlement, these prices were up between €60-€90/tonne. In the spot market, PET prices drifted lower, with bottle grades falling to between €930-€960/tonne FD Northwest Europe. —[email protected]