Market Report Plastics - January 2014
Information about the market for plastics is being presented by:
bvse - Bundesverband Sekundärrohstoffe und Entsorgung e.V.
1. The market for primary plastics
Ultimately, 2013 will have to be assessed as a difficult year for plastics manufacturers and processors. Over the year, there were only a few market impulses on an adequate basic turnover. The plastics manufacturers and processors are optimising their business activities to an adequate degree. Most orders are "just in time", which means that medium- and long-term planning is possible only to a very limited extent in the plastics industry. Predictions and estimates by economic institutes for economic developments in 2014 continue to be positive for Germany and for the whole of Europe.
Standard plastics - overview of 2013: The EUWID quotes for standard plastics, cf. www.euwid.de, of December 2012, which amounted to 1436 /t, were followed in May 2013 with their lowest level of 1364 , to climb to their highest level of 1490 /t by September 2013, from which a new low of 1372 /t was reached in December 2013, cf. Table 1. The price difference between the mean values of the two December quotes is 64 /t. The price difference between the mean values of the highest and lowest price is as much as 126/t. Nevertheless, the monthly price changes in 2013 were relatively low. In 2013 goods were mainly ordered "just in time". This means that it is hardly possible to plan for the medium term, never mind long term, in plastics manufacture.
Table 1: EUWID quotes in standard plastics in 2013 with their highest and lowest levels; prices in /t.
Standard plastics the December quotes: The price quotes of standard plastics according to EUWID fell for the third time in December. The slide in prices is in turn justified by the falling precursor product prices. In December 2013 the prices of standard plastics were an average of 33/t below those of the previous month. The processors' hopes for falling plastics prices have thus been satisfied for the third time in succession. PVC has fallen below the 1000 /t threshold!
Technical plastics overview of 2013: The development of price quotes for technical plastics in 2013, cf. Table 2, is characterised by a price rise until June and then continually falling prices until December. The difference of the mean values in 2013 from the highest level in June (at 2530 /t) to the lowest level in December 2012 (at 2476 /t) was only 63 /t; i.e. the prices for technical plastics were constant in 2013.
Table 2: Comparison between the EUWID quotes of technical plastics in 2013 including their highest and lowest levels; prices in /t
Technical plastics - the December quotes: For seasonal reasons, demand in December was weaker than in the previous months. The slide in prices is also due to the falling prices of precursor products. Price falls were reported for technical plastics for the third time since the highest level in June 2013. The prices dropped by an average 14/t from October to December. The quotes for PMMA and POM are unchanged. New impetus that could stimulate demand for technical plastics is expected from the end of February at the earliest.
2 The secondary plastics market
2.1 Review of the plastics quotes in 2013
When comparing the prices of December 2012 with those of December 2013, prices for the standard waste plastics, in other words the processing material, had hardly changed. EUWID quotes only PS higher than in the previous year, by an average of 30 /t. By contrast, the Plasticker Price Index, which also includes recyclate prices, shows a price fall of 33 /t within a year. Ultimately, this can be seen as a stabilisation of the prices for waste plastics and recyclates. Although there is adequate demand for recyclates given the stable prices, sales could certainly be higher. While there are rising quality demands on those recyclates that complement new materials, it is barely possible to pass on the costs that have risen relentlessly over the years. The recycling of mixed plastics and films has become more firmly established in Germany, in spite of deteriorating processing input. Here, another market has become established, especially in Germany, alongside that for segregated plastics recycling; both at the level of recyclates and at the level of products, i.e. semi-finished products as well as industrial and consumer end products. In Europe, the recycling of mixed pastics is being further expanded.
Technical plastics recyclates, cf. Table 4, rose by 65/t from December 2012 to December 2013. There was subdued demand for technical plastics recyclates in 2013. There is a basic turnover for these specialities that can only be expanded slowly. Volatility for technical plastics is higher than for standard plastics. For this reason, the above annual changes in the amount of 65 /t show price stability.
In conjunction with the discussions about the Green Paper "Plastic Wastes" and in connection with the criteria of End of Waste, plastics recycling is increasingly coming to the attention of ministries.
In 2013, the competition for processing input at prices appropriate for the quality went largely in favour of the plastics recyclers in Germany because "Green Fence" restricted demand from the Far East. The many innovations and further developments in mechanical and plant engineering are helping plastics recycling to establish itself further. However, plastics recycling in Germany is dependent on the EEC tax cap being retained, especially because it is in unequal competition with the People's Republic of China.
2.2 Market report on the months of December 2013 and January 2014
The December to January period is determined by the Christmas festivities, on the one hand, and the Chinese New Years celebrations, on the other. In December, export demand improved greatly as a result of the more stringent conditions of "Green Fence". In January and until mid-February export demand from the Far East will decline because of the Chinese New Years celebrations. Plastics processors used the Christmas period to supply themselves with recyclates at favourable prices. Furthermore, some plastics recyclers strategically filled their warehouses with processing materials.
For standard plastics the EUWID magazine identifies numerous, but only minimal price changes for January 2014 in comparison to November 2013. In EUWID the price falls are 5 /t to 25 /t on average. In addition, a few price rises are also reported, which averaged 5 /t. The plasticker internet platform reports a lower average price fall of 7/t for January 2014 in comparison to November 2013. Both price indexes report roughly the same trend. These price corrections are categorised as slight in the general scheme of things by both price indexes and thus show price stabilisation.
2.2.1 EUWID Price Watch
In the new year EUWID brought forward publication of its Price Watch, with the result that both quotes have been reported in January 2014, i.e. those of December 2013 and January 2014. However, since only the January 2014 price quotes for PVC and PS differ from those of December 2013, where the changes were only 5 /t to 10 /t on average, the following will discuss the January 2014 Price Watch with its changes in comparison to November 2013.
The standard plastics in the EUWID Watch of waste plastics for January 2014 have held their own in comparison to the quotes from November 2013. There are only relatively slight and often only one-sided price changes in the lower or upper price range.
The price of PE changed only minimally. Here there are only six changes, each of which only influences the price range by plus or minus 10 /t. The quotes for HDPE mixed colours and LDPE film grade natural only rose by 10 /t in the lower price segment. The following prices were quoted in January 2014: HDPE mixed colours 480 640 /t, HDPE natural 630 760 /t, LDPE mixed colours 470 600 /t, LDPE natural 640 740 /t, LDPE film grade mixed colours (K49) 250 330 /t, LDPE film grade natural (K40) 470 - 590 /t. In the case of post-user PE, the prices of thin mixed-coloured film, mixed-coloured HDPE hollow bodies and mixed-coloured HDPE regrind from crates rose by 5 /t on average, whereas the quotes for mixed-coloured HDPE regrind from crates fell by 5 /t. The following prices were quoted in January 2014: LDPE shrink film natural (E40) 490 - 560 /t, LDPE shrink film mixed colours (E49) 230 - 330 /t, film transparent natural <70 ΅m 400 - 440 /t, film transparent mixed colours <70 ΅m 50 - 170 /t, LDPE farm film b/w > 70 ΅m 30 - 60 /t, mixed film (90:10) 250-280 /t, mixed film (80:20) 240 - 260 /t, HDPE hollow bodies mixed colours (C29) 140 - 270 /t, HDPE regrind from crates, colour-separated 640 - 820 /t and HDPE regrind from crates, colour-separated 550 - 610 /t.
Post-industrial PP: Here the two quotes for film grade fell, namely by 10 /t or 15 /t on average. The following prices were quoted in January: film grade mixed colours (K59) 120 250 /t, film natural (K50) 30-440 /t, homopolymer mixed colours 450 - 620 /t, homopolymer natural 630 - 790 /t, copolymer mixed colours 450 - 620 /t and copolymer mixed colours 630 - 790 /t. There are sufficient bale goods in the markets, which are processed into PP recyclates, into PO recyclates or into mixed plastics products.
Post-industrial PS showed changes by +/- 10 /t in the lower price segment. The following prices were quoted in January: standard mixed colours, standard mixed colours 540 - 680 /t, standard crystal clear 640 - 830 /t, standard white 640 - 830 /t, high impact mixed colours 630 - 680 /t, high impact black 630 - 680 /t and high impact white 720 - 860 /t. The demand for PS processing goods is still reported to be favourable and that despite the winter break. In total, the demand for PS recyclates considerably exceeds the supply, which is produced by recycling post-industrial waste as well as post-consumer goods and goods from trade and industry.
PVC: All PVC quality grades quoted in the Price Watch have been adjusted in price. In the case of post-industrial PVC, the price cuts are 5 /t on average. The prices quoted in January were: white transparent 400 480 /t, white mixed colours 310 440 /t, PVC_U transparent 480 620 /t, PVC _U mixed colours 480 600 /t and tube grade 480 600 /t. In the case of PVC windowframe regrind the price cuts amount to 18 /t on average. The following prices were quoted in January: windowframe regrind white 610 720 /t, windowframe regrind mixed colours 500 600 /t and windowframe regrind single shade white 720 820 /t. In the case of PVC, a seasonal standstill is expected to occur in winter. However, the winter ist still mild in Germany, which is why there continues to be demand for PVC, in particular from the building sector.
The PET market: The supply of bottles continued to be adequate in December; since the consumption of PET beverage bottles is rising overall, seasonal fluctuations are no longer as strong as before and the recyclers conduct longer plant maintenance. The difference to the previous year's quotes is noticeable, for example within a year the quotes for transparent bottle PET fell by 110/t from December 2012 to December 2013 and those for coloured PET by 113 /t. PET bottle quotes reached their lowest level to date in December 2013. In January 2014 the average price of transparent EUWID PET bottles was unchanged and PET mixed colours fell by 13 /t compared to November 2013. Hence, the following new prices were quoted: PET transparent 245 285 /t and PET mixed colours 55 90 /t. The PET virgin material prices are also indicated here for comparison, which amounted to 1160 1260 /t in January and to 1150 1240 /t in November.
2.2.2 plasticker price index
The plasticker internet platform publishes quotes on an hourly basis. However, the present market report shows the final monthly prices. The preliminary quotes previously accumulated are only represented during the reporting month in question, in this case for January 2014 - these quotes merely reflect an interim situation that does not become definitive until the following month.
Standard plastics
In December, the quotes for standard plastics were not uniform. Although the average value has been unchanged over the previous month, the individual quotes show clear changes. The price rises range from 10 /t to 140 /t and the falls from 10 /t to 160 /t. Overall, the plastics prices are holding their own. In December demand was only slightly lower than in the previous month because of the holidays. This means that many year-end purchases were made to fill warehouses and secure the favourable prices.
Having reached their highest level in August (at 1420 /t) and in October (at 1340 /t), the prices of PS regranulates have fallen again considerably in January 2014, reaching a prospective 970 /t. With the exception of PS regranulates, quotes have attained approximately the level of the previous December. According to plasticker the following December quotes changed by more than +/- 40 /t compared to the previous month: HDPE regranulates - 110 /t, LDPE regranulates + 60 /t, PS regrind 50 /t, PS regranulates 160 /t and PET regrind mixed colours + 50.
A first preview of the January 2014 quotes, which cannot be finally reported until February 2014, indicates that the average price is likely to be 604 /t. The plasticker internet platform showed falling prices for standard plastics on 14 January 2013. January thus has rather subdued demand, which is due to the winter break.
Table 3: Prices of standard plastics in plasticker, quoted in /t
*: Supply figures too low to attain statistical significance; 1: equivalent to the grade post-industrial, mixed colours; 2: equivalent to K49; 3: equivalent to K59; 4: equivalent to standard, mixed colours; 5: equivalent to the grade regranulates, black, 6: forecast (may be amended by additional quotes)
Technical plastics
In December technical plastics prices changed only minimally compared to the previous month. The December prices exceeded those quoted in November by only 4 /t on average, with price increase ranging between 10 /t and 100 /t and price cuts ranging from 10 /t to 160 /t. A comparison between the 2013 December quotes with those of 2012 shows that prices were raised by small gradations, by 65 /t on average. While the quotes for ABS, PBT and POM remained more or less unchanged from December 2013 to December 2012, PC and polyamids were price drivers in 2013. According to plasticker the following price quotes changed by more than +/- 70 /t in November: ABS regranulates 160 /t, PC regranulates + 90 /t and POM regranulates + 100 /t. In November the demand for technical plastics slightly decreased due to the public holidays. There were also year-end purchases of technical plastics.
The first preview of the 2014 January quotes, which cannot be finally reported until the beginning of February 2014, shows that the average price of 1413 /t has not changed. Thus, the January quotes indicated by the plasticker internet platform for 14th January 2014 have held their own. To date, the demand for technical plastics has been rather restrained in January 2014; even this is, once again, due to the winter break.
Table 4: Prices of technical plastics in plasticker, quoted in /t
5: equivalent to the grade "regranulates, black". 6 forecast (may be amended by additional quotes)
No guarantee for any of the prices. All EUWID prices are quoted ex works. As a rule, the prices quoted refer to quantities in excess of 20 tons. The monthly quotes for secondary plastics, which are updated on an hourly basis, can be calculated using the price lists that are derived from the quotations published in the raw material exchange plasticker. The prices listed in this index are quoted with reservation - as the majority of the quotes submitted are not necessarily equivalent to the sales prices. Furthermore, plasticker does not distinguish between the following grades: transparent, mixed colours or colour-separated. Therefore, the information provided by plasticker may indicate different market behaviour than the prices quoted by EUWID. Plasticker offers the quality grades regrind and regranulates in the form of both virgin materials and secondary materials.
