1. Price Trend
The maleic anhydride commodity index on April 16 was 60.92, an increase of 1.26 points from yesterday, a decrease of 50.74% from the highest point in the cycle of 123.67 points (2017-12-26), and an increase from the lowest point of 51.18 points on April 14, 2020 19.03%. (Note: Period refers to 2011-09-01 to present)
According to business data, the average price of maleic anhydride on April 16th was 6466.67 yuan / ton (tax included), up 19.02% from the 13th.
2. Analysis of influencing factors
Products: This week, domestic maleic anhydride market prices jumped upward. This week, domestic maleic anhydride stocks are low, and the supply of solid anhydride in the main production areas is limited.
Industry chain: International crude oil fell, downstream unsaturated resins rose steadily, terminal demand eased, but orders were taken cautiously, and purchases were mainly depended on demand. According to the monitoring, the price of pure benzene has continued to rise recently, and the listing prices of pure benzene on the 16th were 3000-4000 yuan / ton. Moreover, the price of hydrogenated benzene also continued to rise. On the 16th, the mainstream rates of the hydrogenated benzene market in East China ranged from 3400 to 3500 yuan / ton. The rise in propylene has driven up the price of n-butane. In conclusion, rising raw material prices are driving the maleic anhydride market.
3. Future market forecast
Analysts of maleic anhydride believe that: at present, the supply of maleic anhydride plants is tight. Due to downstream costs, purchasing mainly depend on-demand. Under the impact of epidemics, crude oil prices are still low. The plants’ operating rate of maleic anhydride increased in this month, so the supply side supported the price of maleic anhydride in the short-term, but the demand was limited. It is expected that the maleic anhydride market may have a callback risk in May.