US spot ethylene extends uptrend, increasing by 4%

09 January 2012 22:58  [Source: ICIS news]

HOUSTON (ICIS)--US spot ethylene traded sharply higher on Monday, climbing by 4% from Friday on limited availability amid the start of a busy maintenance season in the US Gulf.

US ethylene for January traded at 59.875 cents/lb ($1,320/tonne, €1,043/tonne), up from a deal done at 57.500 cents/lb on Friday.

The increase on Monday followed a 6% gain in the previous week, when January ethylene traded at 56.750–57.500 cents/lb, rising from 53.875 cents/lb in the last week of December.

Market sources said ethylene spot availability in the US was limited, citing inventory building because of planned cracker turnarounds in the coming weeks.

($1 = €0.79)

For more on ethylene visit ICIS chemical intelligence 

By: William Lemos