Polyethylene (PE) demand in Europe has slowed down in October, and many players are now waiting for the new November ethylene contract to settle to give some direction for next month’s PE pricing, sources said on Thursday. SEE MORE European benzene spot prices have risen further this week, although the upward momentum eased off slightly from mid-week onwards, sources said on Thursday. SEE MORE The base metals on the London Metal Exchange are up across the board by an average of 0.5% this morning, Thursday October 26. Aluminium leads the way with a 0.9% rally to $2,209.50 per tonne – the high so far has been $2,215, which means prices have surpassed the October 2012 peak of $2,212. Copper prices ($7,022 per tonne) and tin prices are up 0.2%, while the rest are up between 0.5% and 0.6%. SEE MORE Crude oil prices edged lower on Thursday, after data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration showed domestic crude stockpiles increased for the first time in five weeks. SEE MORE China’s domestic bisphenol A (BPA) prices have surged to near eight-month highs and look set to continue rising on the back of strong downstream demand and tight availability of spot cargoes, industry sources said. SEE MORE