Polyamide 66 Monthly Review: Demand Weakness Drags PA66 Market Higher Then Lower in April

I. Analysis of This Month’s Market Performance

The domestic PA66 market in China showed an overall trend of rising first and then falling in April, with the monthly average price showing a significant increase. Among them, the monthly average price of bulk industrial plastic grade chips in Yuyao area was 22,929 yuan/ton, an increase of 3,618 yuan/ton compared to 19,311 yuan/ton in the previous month, representing a month-on-month increase of 18.74%, and a year-on-year increase of 38.75% compared to 16,525 yuan/ton in the same period last year.

Specifically, the PA66 market in China opened the month on an upward trend, primarily supported by raw material prices. However, subsequently, spot prices of key raw materials—including butadiene, hexamethylenediamine, and adipic acid—rose sharply before declining, weakening cost support. Meanwhile, terminal demand remained lackluster, and downstream enterprises’ willingness to purchase high-priced materials continued to weaken. Although polymerization plants still attempted to maintain prices, the overall market fundamentals weakened, failing to sustain further price increases. As a result, domestic PA66 engineering plastic-grade chip prices surged initially before trending downward with volatility. By month-end, the spot price for engineering plastic-grade chips in the East China region stood at RMB 21,000–22,500 per metric ton (cash basis, ex-works).

II. Next Month's Market Forecast

The domestic PA66 market is expected to remain weak and volatile in May, primarily influenced by the interplay between costs and supply-demand dynamics. On the cost side, butadiene prices—the key raw material—are projected to continue declining in a volatile manner, thereby easing production costs for adiponitrile. Although Invista raised its May adipic diamine (HMD) quotation by RMB 1,000/ton to RMB 27,000/ton, high-priced spot transactions have faced resistance, indicating a likely downward adjustment in HMD prices ahead. Consequently, cost support for PA66 is expected to remain limited.

From a supply-demand perspective, downstream PA66 enterprises continue to strongly resist high raw material prices, and the industry’s overall sentiment remains weak; procurement practices will continue to follow a “just-in-time” approach, making it difficult to generate substantial stockpiling to provide support. Currently, polymerization enterprises are operating at relatively low utilization rates, and in May, industry facilities will witness a simultaneous trend of production cuts and resumptions, resulting in only limited fluctuations in overall capacity utilization. Consequently, the supply side is unlikely to deliver any significant positive impetus. Overall, the domestic PA66 market is expected to remain in a weak, range-bound pattern in the near term, with close attention warranted on raw material price volatility and the recovery of downstream demand.