Nearly all grades of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) lost ground, typically between $0.01 and 0.02/lb, reports the PlasticsExchange (Chicago) in its Market Update.
Trading activity was heavily skewed toward polyethylene over polypropylene in a week that saw one of the year’s best numbers in terms of completed volumes.
While the previous week was dominated by trader-to-trader activity, this past week saw more processors re-join the market to scoop up any remaining resin that was still priced flat to slightly higher than late September values.
Demand remained robust at the start of the month, particularly from the reseller community as sentiment has turned moderately bullish. Processors were also back in the market, unafraid to pay a penny more than in the previous week.
The spot polyethylene (PE) market was very busy last week, as buyers and sellers completed a relatively high volume of transactions. In general, sellers kept the market well supplied with a good flow of fresh offers.
Buyers were fairly active again, finding value in the cheaper resin, while some Southeast processors began filling short-term supply gaps caused by Hurricane Florence.
Activity was muted in the spot resin markets during the Labor Day–shortened week. However, the PlasticsExchange (Chicago) recommends maintaining ample inventories as potentially disruptive weather systems heat up in the Gulf.
