Market and product
US February ethylene contracts roll over
HOUSTON (ICIS)--The US February ethylene contract has fully settled at a rollover, sources said on Monday.
Buyers and sellers confirmed settling US February ethylene contracts at 48 cents/lb ($1,058/tonne, €815/tonne), flat with January.
Sources said the rollover was largely driven by the fact that changes to the spot ethylene average and production costs were minimal.
Spot ethylene values fell by less than 1 cent/lb during the month as supply improved slightly after several cracker restarts.
US spot ethylene traded at an average of 62.95 cents/lb in February, compared with January’s average of 63.92 cents/lb, as assessed by ICIS.
The decrease in spot prices was mostly balanced by increased cash costs for ethane. Cash costs increased by an estimated 0.25 cent/lb in February from January.
Sources said a rollover was the most likely outcome, especially as spot prices rebounded slightly in the last week of the month.
The US ethylene contract is typically negotiated at the start of the month for the previous month.
Major US ethylene producers include Chevron Phillips Chemical, ExxonMobil, INEOS, LyondellBasell and Shell Chemical.
Major buyers include Axiall, Dow Chemical, Occidental Chemical and Total.
($1 = €0.77)
