[ABS Daily Review] Supply and Demand Imbalance, ABS Market Prices Continue to Decline at the Beginning of the Month

1 Today's Summary:

1. Today, the prices in the East China market dropped; the South China market prices adjusted and consolidated, with market transactions maintaining just the necessary demand.

② The decline in raw material prices provided limited support to the ABS market, and prices continued to fall.

2 Spot Market Overview:

Table 1 Summary of Domestic ABS Prices (Unit: yuan/ton)

Using Yuyao and Dongguan as benchmarks, prices in the East China market moved lower, while prices in the South China market pulled back and consolidated. Today, raw material prices declined, and with the off-season for demand approaching, the oversupply situation has become evident. Manufacturers are facing increasing inventory pressure, and prices have fluctuated downward. ABS market prices are expected to remain weak tomorrow.

3 Production Dynamics

The 200,000 tpy ABS plant of Shandong Haijiang was shut down for maintenance on August 28 and restarted on October 5. It began shutting down again on December 1. The plant is currently offline.Shandong Lihuayi’s 400,000 t/year ABS unit began raising its operating rate to 60% on May 9.

Figure 2 Weekly Domestic ABS Capacity Utilization Rate Trend Chart	Figure 3 Weekly Domestic ABS Cost and Profit Trend Chart
Data source: Longzhong Information	Data source: Longzhong Information

4 Price Prediction:

Based on the prices in Yuyao and Dongguan, prices in the East China market fell, and prices in the South China market also fell. Today’s market trading atmosphere is sluggish, with weak purchasing interest from end users. The market tends to buy when prices rise rather than when they fall, and prices are fluctuating downward. ABS market prices are expected to remain on a downward trend in the short term.

5 Related product information:

Styrene Market ： Judging from the afternoon news, ZhejiangStyrene markettemporarily narrow During the trading session, the main contracts for crude oil, pure benzene, and styrene experienced slight fluctuations and consolidation. The styrene market was narrow, with buying interest on hold and demand-based purchasing.. The reference price is at 9040/9080 yuan/ton 。

Acrylonitrile Market ： East China region todayAcrylonitrile market pricePrices fell, with mainstream offers delivered at reference prices of RMB 10,500–10,800/mt, down RMB 100–200/mt from the previous trading day. Supply remained ample while demand was also subdued, causing the focus of spot market negotiations to move lower.

Butadiene market: As of the time of publication, the ex-tank self-pickup price of butadiene in Jiangyin, Jiangsu is around 11,900-12,000 yuan/ton, up 250 yuan/ton month-on-month. After the negotiation focus moved higher, some follow-up deals were heard, while some traders still showed reluctance to sell at low prices.

Table 4 Overview of Domestic ABS Data (Unit: 10,000 tons)