Chemical News
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Benzene's premium to naphtha at a 7-week low, amid a search for direction May 31,2013
European benzene's premium over naphtha slipped to a seven-week low, despite continuing lack of clarity on the market direction going into June. The spread between spot benzene and its feedstock naphtha was assessed at $500.25/mt at Wednesday's close, Platts data showed. Spot benzene barges were last assessed at $1,345/mt CIF ARA, while napht...>>>
Argentina's polymer output fell 14.7% in April on year: government May 31,2013
Argentina's production of polymer and synthetic rubber fell 14.7% in April compared with the year-earlier period but was 4.1% higher than March, the government statistics office, Indec, said Thursday. Production of these petrochemicals in January-April was down 3.7% from the year-earlier period, Indec said in a report that did not give actual v...>>>
ANGA likes Obama's shout-out to US LNG exports May 31,2013
Heartened by a brief mention of liquefied natural gas exports by President Barack Obama, the new head of the US trade group for shale gas producers said Thursday he thought Obama should hasten a permitting process that has issued only two permits thus far. "The great news, here in America, is that by 2020 we'll be a net exporter of natural gas,"...>>>
UK gas-fired power hit 16-year lows in 2012: government data May 31,2013
The proportion of UK electricity generated from gas fell to 16-year lows last year as cheaper coal prices spurred generators into increasing coal-fired power to its greatest share of the electricity mix since 1996, government data shows. The share of gas-fired power within the UK generation mix fell from 39.9% in 2011 to just 27.5% in 2012, acco...>>>
Basrah crude quality has settled around 28-30 API: Iraq's Luaibi May 31,2013
The quality of Iraq's Basrah crude has stabilized at an API gravity level of 28-30 degrees after some fluctuation in recent months, the country's oil minister said Thursday. "Its quality is stable around 28-30 API. The only change we had in the past few months there was a difference between the API quality from shipments loaded from the SPMs [si...>>>
Seattle high sulfur bunker fuel prices lowest since July 2012 May 31,2013
High sulfur bunker fuel prices in Seattle were assessed by Platts Thursday at their lowest levels in almost a year. Platts assessed the IFO 380 CST market in Seattle at $575.25/mt ex-wharf, its lowest price since it was assessed at $574.50/mt ex-wharf on July 12 last year. At that time, ICE Brent front-month crude futures were assessed at $100.7...>>>
China 100 Spot Commodities Price Chart - 29/05/2013 May 30,2013
was assessed by SunSirs that in the tracked 100 spot commodities,17 commodities increased in prices, 32 fell and 51 remained unchanged on 29/05/2013.The largest rises were Soybean meal (2.16%),Copper (0.86%),Natural rubber (0.45%),while the largest falls we...>>>
Thailand's Apr ethanol exports slide 42% from Mar as shipments to Japan dry up May 30,2013
Thailand's undenatured ethanol exports in April fell 42.4% month on month to 14,787 cubic meters, according to Thai customs data released Wednesday. April exports were also down 54.8% year on year, the data showed. The month-on-month slide came with exports to Japan falling to zero in April, compared with 11,555 cu m in March. But shipments t...>>>
May US acetone CP settlement rolls over at 58.5 cents/lb: sources May 30,2013
The May US contract price for acetone has settled at a rollover of 58.50 cents/lb ($1,289.69/mt), sources said Wednesday. The settlement came as no surprise according to market participants because of firm acetone pricing and market fundamentals throughout May. Acetone prices have held firm in the spot market despite tight supply and slightl...>>>
Despite price declines, Peabody forecasts increased Asian coal demand May 30,2013
Despite depressed prices for seaborne metallurgical and thermal coal, Peabody Energy expects global coal demand to grow nearly 4% in 2013, and 13% in China and India combined, according to an investor presentation made Wednesday at the company's St. Louis headquarters. The written portion of the presentation, filed with US Securities and Exchang...>>>
India's GAIL to more than double spot LNG imports in fiscal 2013-14 May 30,2013
India's state-owned gas utility GAIL expects to import 34 spot LNG cargoes in fiscal year 2013-14 (April-March), more than double the 16 spot cargoes it imported in the previous year, to meet demand for the Dabhol LNG terminal and make up for a shortfall in domestic gas production. "We are also seeing a lot of gas demand from segments other than...>>>
UK GAS: Uptick in demand prompts storage withdrawals, prices up May 30,2013
Gas for same- and next-day delivery firmed Wednesday morning on the UK's NBP trading hub following a rise in demand which caused some slight early shortness in the system and the need for medium range storage withdrawals. Gas for within-day delivery was trading at 67.85 pence/therm at midday in the UK, up by 0.75 p/th from Tuesday's close, and t...>>>
Kuwaiti oil output capacity seen reaching 3.6 mil b/d by 2022: study May 30,2013
Kuwait will increase its oil production capacity to about 3.6 million b/d by 2022, according to a study by the emirate's Diplomatic Center for Strategic Studies (DCSS). The official KUNA news agency reported Wednesday that the study said there were several factors that would keep Kuwait's oil output capacity on an upward path through 2022, incl...>>>
Crude pushes to fresh lows ahead of settle, extending overnight drop May 30,2013
Crude futures fell to fresh lows immediately ahead of the 2:30 p.m. EDT (1830 GMT) market settle Wednesday, as the oil complex extended an overnight selloff in US trading after equity markets slid throughout the the session. NYMEX July crude settled down $1.88/b at $93.13/b, after hitting a low of $93.04/b shortly ahead of Wednesday's close. ...>>>
PX ACP likely to reach settlement for June on firmer PTA margin: sources May 29,2013
The Asia Contract Price for paraxylene is likely to reach a settlement for June, after no conclusion for May, as a firmer purified terephthalic acid production margin has narrowed the gap between buyers and sellers, sources close to the negotiations said Tuesday. "The PTA margin is improving and operating rates of Chinese PTA producers are incr...>>>
Spot butane availability at Lavera tight on petchems, export demand May 29,2013
The availability of spot butane at the French Mediterranean port of Lavera is tight due to petrochemicals and export demand, according to industry sources Tuesday. During the summer, surplus butane from refineries at Lavera is used as an alternative feedstock to naphtha at the LyondellBasell and Naphtachimie steam crackers with other product goi...>>>
May US acetone CP initially rolls over at 58.50 cents/lb: sources May 29,2013
The May US contract price for acetone settled initially in a rollover at 58.50 cents/lb ($1,289.69/mt), sources said Tuesday. The US acetone contract typically settles retroactively. "The settlement is not industry-wide yet," one market participant said. Producer confirmation was not immediately available. A second market source stated tha...>>>
New capacity explains Japan's April thermal coal import rise: Macquarie May 29,2013
A spike in Japan's thermal coal imports in April was more a short-term push to accommodate new coal-fired power generation capacity coming online rather than any sign of a sustained long-term trend, according to a report by Macquarie Commodities Research. Japan imported 7.8 million mt of thermal coal in April, up 10% from the corresponding 2012 ...>>>
New supply, rising costs cast shadow on Australian LNG May 29,2013
A combination of new supply sources and rising costs at home could mean Australia's burgeoning LNG sector losing ground to new players, several speakers at an oil industry conference in Brisbane warned this week. On Sunday the chief executive of the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association, David Byers, cautioned that Australi...>>>
US FERC approves extension of Discovery's offshore gas system May 29,2013
Discovery Gas Transmission may build 9.5 miles of pipeline and other facilities off the coast of Louisiana to provide 405,000 Dt/d of firm transportation service, the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission said in a recent order. The $126 million project would allow Discovery to receive newly developed sources of gas in the Keathley Canyon area...>>>