Resin pricing: Hikes continue; the latest from BASF, Sun Chemical, Bayer, DuPont, and DAK

Among numerous price increases announced this week were the following:

* BASF from July 1 intends to raise its prices globally up to euro 400 per tonne (about $0.28/lb) across its portfolio of styrenic copolymer specialties and engineering plastics. The prices for Ultrason grades (includes its PSU, PESU and PPSU plastics) and polyamide specialties will be raised by up to euro 850 per tonne. BASF subsidiary Elastogran also increased its prices for polyurethane basic products and specialties in Europe with immediate effect.

* Ferro Corp. (Cleveland, OH) announced price increases of up to 20% for its Polymer Specialty Materials products. Pricing changes will be effective June 30 or July 15, 2008, depending on the product line. Ferro supplies benzyl phthalates, epoxidized soybean oil, mixed metal stabilizers, phosphate esters, metallic stearates, liquid colorants, compounds, and more.

* The performance pigments division of Sun Chemical Corp. (Parsippany, NJ) will increase global pigment prices on average by 10-30% effective July 1. Myron Petruch, president, Performance Pigments, Sun Chemical, said, “Costs are escalating at higher amounts than at any time in the last 30 years.” This price increase is in addition to price increases announced in February 2008 and will affect pigments in all forms, including dry, preparations, and flushes.

* Bayer MaterialScience (Leverkusen, Germany) raised global prices for its Makrolon, Makroblend, Bayblend T and Apec polycarbonate (PC) and PC blends by euro 0.15/kg effective June 16. The price of Bayblend flame retardant blends is also being increased globally but by euro 0.20 per kilogram.

* DuPont Performance Elastomers (Wilmington, DE) will lift Viton fluoroelastomers and chemicals prices by 10%, effective July 15. The company said that manufacturing efficiencies, which are normally used to offset increased material costs, are not sufficient to cover those increases this time.

* DAK Americas LLC (Charlotte, NC), a producer of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyester staple fibers, and raw materials for polyester-based products, stopped short of announcing price increases but said that “unprecedented” steps would be needed to “ensure the viability of its future.” DAK said it will continue to prioritize and implement cost-saving actions that reduce energy usage and weigh internal growth, acquisitions, and innovation in the polyester value chain.