Copyright © 2014 Reed Business Information Limited. ICIS Pricing is a member of the Reed Elsevier plc group.

7th January 2014

Butanediol
(Asia Pacific)
Editor Judith Wang, judith.wang@icis.com

CONTRACT PRICES
Click for Price History Price Range Four weeks ago US CTS/LB
DEL KOREA DEC USD/TONNE n/c 2350-2550 n/c 2350-2550 106.59-115.67

DEL TAIWAN DEC USD/TONNE -11 2175-2192 -11 2186-2203 98.66-99.43

SPOT PRICES
Click for Price History Price Range Four weeks ago US CTS/LB
CFR CHINA MAIN
USD/TONNE n/c 1840-1850 n/c 1840.00-1850.00 83.46-83.91

le
PORT (Bulk)
CFR CHINA MAIN
USD/TONNE n/c 2040-2050 n/c 2040-2050 92.53-92.99
PORT (Drummed)
DEL CHINA CNY/TONNE n/c 13200-13500 +50 13250-13500 98.95-101.20

NOTE: for full details on the criteria ICIS pricing uses in making these price assessments visit www.icispricing.com and
click on “methodology”.
mp
Prices stable-to-firm on higher domestic prices
New export orders index went down by 0.8 from the previous
month to 49.8 and the import index was 1.5 lower at 49.0, both
below the 50-point threshold, according to data from the China
Federation of Logistics & Purchasing (CFLP).
In the key domestic market, some producers and traders
raised prices in the early part of the year to recoup margins,
given the high feedstock prices and low BDO inventory.
The market sentiment was buoyed to an extent amid the
ongoing shutdown and delayed start-up of a major plant in
northeast China, sources said.
However, most market participants said the price uptrend will
be limited as some downstream polyurethane (PU) plants will
Sa

be shut down in the coming weeks ahead of Lunar New Year

Asia’s butanediol (BDO) prices were stable-to-firm at the
beginning of the year on the back of higher domestic prices.
On the import side, the prices for import cargoes remained
stable amid limited discussions heard in the market.
Major producers continued to maintain their offers on eroded
margins and limited supply, although the buying interest for
import cargoes was weak on the ample availability of domestic
cargoes and decreasing export orders.
The discussion levels for import cargoes were heard stable at
$1,840-1,850/tonne CFR CMP.
from 31 January to 6 February.
As a result, most end-users purchased cargoes on a need-to
basis and they were reluctant to build up inventory, given the
ample supply of domestic cargoes.
The average operating rate of China’s BDO plants was stable
at 55% capacity during the week.
Discussions and deals for small volumes were at yuan (CNY)
13,400-13,500/tonne DEL, while discussions and deals for
large-volume cargoes were at CNY13,200-13,300/tonne DEL.
Contract
In South Korea, major producers have largely settled their
December contract prices at a rollover from November at
$2,350-2,550/tonne DEL Korea.

China’s purchasing managers’ index (PMI) edged down to 51.0 The December contract prices were largely settled at New
in December 2013 compared with 51.4 in previous month, as a Taiwan dollars (NT$) 64.50-65.00/kg DEL Taiwan, which were
result of falling export orders towards the end of the year, equivalent to $2,175-2,192/tonne DEL Taiwan.
industry sources said on 2 January. Feedstock

Copyright violation is a serious offence. Any distribution or forwarding of information which is not expressly permitted by your subscription
agreement is a copyright violation. ICIS pricing will be using software to monitor unauthorised electronic redistribution of reports.
Copyright 2014 Reed Business Information Limited. ICIS pricing is a member of the Reed Elsevier plc group.
 Butanediol (Asia Pacific)

Page 2 of 2

The year 2014 got off to a quick start, with butadiene (BD)
trades heard done for second-half January shipments following
the return of the players after the holidays. Chinese buying
interest picked up this week, with trades heard done in the high
$1,400s/tonne CFR NE Asia for late-January shipments.
BD spot prices in Asia increased by $10/tonne week on week
to $1,460-1,520/tonne CFR NE Asia in the week ended 3
January.
Limited spot availability placed upward pressure on spot import
prices and spot domestic prices in China over the past two
weeks, according to market participants. The import prices of
propylene oxide (PO) in Asia rose by $60-100/tonne to $1,900-
1,950/tonne CFR China in the week ended 3 January.
prices on the back of subdued trade. MA spot prices in
southeast Asia fell by $30/tonne to $1,800-1,820/tonne CFR
SE Asia.
Production news
China’s Sichuan Tianhua shut its 60,000 tonne/year BDO plant
in southwestern Sichuan province on 30 November and the
shutdown may last two months.
ChangChun Chemical (PanJin) Co, a subsidiary of Changchun
Group, is expected to start up its 150,000 tonne/year BDO
plant in early 2014, a company source said.
($1 = CNY6.05)

le
Maleic anhydride (MA) spot prices in southeast Asia were
assessed as stable-to-soft in the week ended 3 January, in ($1 = NT$30.07)
tandem with declining feedstock butane January contract

FEEDSTOCK PRICES
Click for Price History Price Range
PROPYLENE CFR N.E. ASIA USD/TONNE +5 1495-1515 +10
BUTADIENE CFR N.E. ASIA
mp USD/TONNE +10 1460-1520 n/c

Pricing information from ICIS is also available via the Dashboard service.
The ICIS Dashboard is a platform that enables you to see pricing, news and analysis in a single screen.
Visit http://www.icis.com/moreondashboard to find out more.

Price history | Related reports | Full report list | Price Alert | Plant performance data
Currency conversion (real time) | Glossary | Methodology | Latest product news | Find a
supplier
Sa

ICIS pricing accepts no liability for commercial decisions based on the content of this report.

For information about multiple
subscriptions and licences to this
information product, or for permission to
photocopy or redistribute individual reports,
please call the relevant office:
London:+44 20 8652 3335,
sales.uk@icis.com
Houston:+1 713 525 2600,
sales.us@icis.com
Singapore:+65 6789 8828,
sales.ap@icis.com
Copyright violation is a serious offence.
Any distribution or forwarding of information
which is not expressly permitted by your
subscription agreement is a copyright
violation. ICIS pricing will be using software
to monitor unauthorised electronic
redistribution of reports. Copyright 2014
Reed Business Information Limited. ICIS
pricing is a member of the Reed Elsevier
plc group.
Customer Support Centre
+44 20 8652 3335 or toll free from
US/Canada:+1 888 525 3255
ICIS pricing:www.icispricing.com
ICIS News:www.icis.com/news
ICIS website:www.icis.com