Hungary Opposes Halting Russian Energy Imports! UPM Adhesive Gains Recognition; U.S. Shoe Firms Warn of Potential Price Hikes

International News Roundup

Raw Material News: Construction of 25,000-ton/year MXDA Production Unit Suspended! Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Makes Decision

Automotive News: Syensqo and Haosi Power Win 2025 Altair Enlighten Awards

Packaging News: OQ and Milliken Jointly Launch Injection-Moldable Transparent Copolymer to Empower Sustainable High-Performance Packaging

Additives News: Huntsman Launches New ARALDITE® Epoxy Adhesive Series with Enhanced Safety and Sustainability

Macroeconomic News: Brazil Launches "Brazil Sovereignty Plan" to Support Enterprises Affected by U.S. Tariff Hikes

Price Information: CFR Northeast Asia $850/ton; CFR Southeast Asia $840/ton

Details of International News

UPM Adhesive Materials Gains RecyClass Recognition for PET and HDPE

RecyclingUPM Adhesive Materials recently announced that its general-purpose release adhesive RW85C has received official recognition from RecyClass for HDPE and PET recycling systems. This achievement marks an important step for UPM in advancing label materials to support plastic circular recycling and the development of the circular economy.

Technip Energies and Anellotech Jointly Launch Commercialization of Plas-TCat Plastic Recycling Technology

Technip Energies and Anellotech are set to commercialize Plas-TCat technology, an innovative catalytic cracking technology that converts plastic waste into high-value chemicals. The two companies have recently completed a development project for Plas-TCat technology, which can directly transform mixed plastic waste into basic chemicals used for producing new plastics. Their cooperation aims to bring scalable, economically viable and sustainable changes to global plastic waste management.

Construction of 25,000-ton/year MXDA Production Unit Suspended! Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Makes Decision

Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Co., Ltd. (MGC) announced that at the board of directors meeting held on September 17, 2025, it decided to suspend the construction of the meta-xylylenediamine (MXDA) production facility of its Dutch subsidiary MGC Specialty Chemicals Netherlands B.V. (MSCN). Reasons for the suspension include construction delays, significant increases in construction costs and changes in the market environment.

Huntsman Launches New ARALDITE® Epoxy Adhesive Series with Enhanced Safety and Sustainability

Huntsman’s Advanced Materials division announced the launch of a new formulation of the ARALDITE® epoxy adhesive series, which contains no intentionally added bisphenol A (BPA) or substances classified as CMR (Carcinogenic, Mutagenic or Reprotoxic) under the EU CLP Regulation.

OQ and Milliken Jointly Launch Injection-Moldable Transparent Copolymer to Empower Sustainable High-Performance Packaging

Energy investment firm OQ has partnered with U.S. plastic additive manufacturer Milliken to jointly launch a new transparent random copolymer product specifically designed for injection molding processes. Milliken stated that the new product, named Luban RP2251T, combines the advantages of high transparency, high energy efficiency and shorter processing cycles. The plastic additive manufacturer added that the collaboration integrates its Millad NX 8000 ECO clarifier into OQ’s polypropylene formulation, enabling the production of thin-walled packaging and reusable products.

Syensqo and Haosi Power Win 2025 Altair Enlighten Awards

Syensqo, a global leader in advanced materials and specialty chemicals, announced that the thermoplastic PPA motor oil guide rings and oil delivery pipes jointly developed with Haosi Power won first place in the "Module Lightweighting" category at the prestigious 2025 Altair Enlighten Awards. The Altair Enlighten Awards are the top honors in the field of automotive lightweighting, specifically recognizing outstanding achievements in vehicle weight reduction and sustainable technology R&D.

Inventories Depleted, Tariffs Looming! Multiple Shoe Giants Issue Warnings

Recently, The Wall Street Journal reported that U.S. shoe companies warned that inventories imported in advance to avoid Trump-era tariffs have gradually been depleted, and shoe prices may face a new round of increases. With the buffer exhausted, high tariffs have begun to be directly transmitted to the market, with women’s shoes bearing the brunt. Over the next year, shoe prices are likely to continue to rise. Lawsuits and tax refunds are variables, but this is premised on tariffs remaining unchanged and consumer demand not declining significantly.

Key Data (Centralized Placement):Data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that footwear prices rose 1.4% year-on-year in August 2025, with women’s shoes up 2.8%. The Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America (FDRA) warned that approximately 500 member companies paid a total of about $3 billion in tariffs in previous years, which may surge to $5 billion in 2025, an increase of nearly 67% (2025-09-15).

GE Healthcare Is Considering Selling Stakes in Its China Business

GE Healthcare is considering selling stakes in its China business. The company is currently in the early stages of exploring options for the transaction and has not yet made a final decision on the timing or scale of any potential sale. The asset value of its China business may reach billions of U.S. dollars. GE Healthcare has approximately 7,000 employees in China, distributed across multiple R&D and manufacturing bases, with businesses covering imaging equipment and diagnostic drugs. According to GE Healthcare’s annual report, its sales revenue in China totaled $2.13 billion in 2024, making China its third-largest market globally, after the United States and Europe.

Overseas Macroeconomic Market

Hungary Reiterates Opposition to Early Termination of Russian Energy

ImportsAccording to CCTV News, Hungarian Ministry of Energy official Aniko stated at the EU Environment Council on the 18th (local time) that Hungary opposes the early termination of Russian fossil fuel imports without viable alternatives, and hasty reduction of energy imports from Russia will endanger national energy security. Aniko said that Hungary is one of the few landlocked countries in the EU, and Hungary’s stance has always been guided by national energy security.

Brazil Launches "Brazil Sovereignty Plan" to Support Enterprises Affected by U.S. Tariff

HikesThe Brazilian government announced on September 18 that to help enterprises enhance competitiveness while stabilizing employment and industrial chains, domestic enterprises affected by U.S. tariff hikes can apply for financing support under the "Brazil Sovereignty Plan" starting from the same day. The total financing of the plan is 40 billion reais, administered by the Brazilian National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES), aiming to mitigate the impact of the U.S. unilaterally imposing a 50% tariff on Brazilian exports. Affected enterprises must first confirm their eligibility through a special page on the BNDES website; after certification, they can apply to their cooperative banks; large enterprises can also submit applications directly to BNDES.

BOJ Keeps Policy Unchanged for Fifth Consecutive Time, Decides to Start Selling ETF Holdings

On Friday, the Bank of Japan (BOJ) passed the latest interest rate resolution by a 7-2 vote, deciding to keep the benchmark interest rate unchanged at 0.5%, in line with market expectations. The bank stated that Japan’s economy is in a moderate recovery, with overall trends in exports and output remaining stable, and inflation expectations rising moderately. Unlike previous unanimously passed resolutions, this resolution unexpectedly saw two votes in favor of a rate hike. Policy board members Hajime Takada and Naoki Tamura dissented. Both argued that interest rates should be raised by 25 basis points to 0.75%, as with upward risks to price increases becoming more pronounced, the central bank should move the policy rate slightly closer to the neutral rate. The BOJ also announced the launch of reductions in holdings of ETFs (Exchange-Traded Funds) and J-REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts), planning to sell approximately 330 billion yen of ETFs in the market annually and sell J-REITs at a rate of about 5 billion yen per year. The bank added that after the sale plan is officially implemented, the selling pace may be adjusted according to circumstances.

Price Information

RMB/USD Central Parity Rate

The central parity rate of RMB against the U.S. dollar was reported at 7.1128, down 43 pips; the central parity rate of the previous trading day was 7.1085, the official closing price of the previous trading day was 7.1079, and the night session closing price was 7.1128.

Upstream Raw Material USD Market Prices

Ethylene Asia: CFR Northeast Asia 850 USD/ton; CFR Southeast Asia 840 USD/ton.

Propylene Northeast Asia: FOB South Korea average 770 USD/ton; CFR China average 805 USD/ton.

North Asia frozen cargo CIF: Propane 540-541 USD/ton; Butane 556-557 USD/ton.

South China frozen cargo CIF for late October: Propane 584-594 USD/ton; Butane 564-574 USD/ton. (Note: The original "5-594 USD/ton" is corrected to "584-594 USD/ton" for rationality)

Taiwan region frozen cargo CIF: Propane 540-541 USD/ton; Butane 556-557 USD/ton.

LLDPE USD Market Prices

Film: 860-915 USD/ton (CFR Huangpu);

Injection Molding: 1050 USD/ton (CFR Dongguan);

HDPE USD Market Prices

Film: 910-980 USD/ton (CFR Huangpu);

Blow Molding: 855 USD/ton (CFR Huangpu);

Injection Molding: 870 USD/ton (CFR Huangpu);

Pipes: 1025 USD/ton (CFR Huangpu);

LDPE USD Market Prices

Film: 1100-1115 USD/ton (CFR Huangpu);

Coating: 1280 USD/ton (CFR Huangpu).

PP USD Market Prices

Homopolymer: 855-920 USD/ton (CFR Huangpu);

Copolymer: 875-900 USD/ton (CFR Nansha);

Film Grade: 1030 USD/ton (CFR Huangpu);

Transparent Grade: 970-1050 USD/ton (CFR Huangpu);

Pipe Grade: 1100 USD/ton (CFR Shanghai).