Industry: Specialty chemicals

Chemical industry summary Global prices and trade for the major polyolefins reflect a reasonable balance of supply and demand that has been supported by a number of global outages, planned and unplanned, particularly in North America. Improved global growth will be required to maintain strong demand growth and chemical operating rates as new capacity in […]

Chemical industry summary Consolidation of the global agricultural chemicals sector is continuing as a brisk pace. On September 14, Monsanto accepted Bayer’s takeover bid, valued at US$66 billion. This included a stock price of $128 per share and the assumption of US$10 billion in debt. The final bid follows two previous bids, and reported talks […]

Chemical industry summary The anticipated secular recovery of the global crude oil market appears to be faltering under the pressure of strong production output and sustained high inventory levels. In July, Saudi oil output rose 123,000 barrels per day to hit a level of 10.67 million bpd. Russian crude exports are up nearly 5% to […]

Chemical industry summary  With the Q2 earnings season in sight, financial analysts are forecasting flat year-on-year earnings results from any chemical companies, with a relative balance of puts and takes from last year’s performance. However, it is likely that industry leaders will note some encouraging signs on the horizon, with several industries seeing modest improvement […]

Chemical industry summary Recent news for global chemicals has been dominated by M&A. This week, Westlake Chemical announced that the board of its acquisition target Axiall has agreed to sell the company for the significantly improved offer of US$33 per share representing an enterprise value of US$3.8 billion. This valuation is a 31% increase from […]

Chemical industry summary The first quarter of the 2016 financial reporting season has been concluded with results generally consistent with forecasts. US-based paint and home supply companies generally reported improved results on a year-on-year basis, with high gross margins due to a benign raw material cost environment. Commodity chemical producers report softer year-on-year revenues but […]

Chemical industry summary Mergers and acquisitions and cost savings activities dominate the chemical industry as companies continue to grapple with shrinking demand and softening chemical margins. The proposed merger of US chemical giants DuPont and Dow Chemical appears to be proceeding well with minimal significant anti-trust issues. There are reports that BASF will make a […]

Chemical industry summary Chemical companies are currently releasing quarterly and full-year 2015 earnings results. Thus far, earnings reports have been a mixed bag as viewed with last year’s results. All companies are reporting year-on-year decreases in revenue as a consequence of the global energy price deflation. However, different sectors of the industry are reporting earnings […]

Chemical industry summary Lack of confidence in global chemical demand and weakness in the energy sector have spurred a generally gloomy outlook for global chemicals in 2016. The continuing weakness in the Chinese demand, especially for commodities, has resulted in weakness in global stock markets and especially on the Shanghai Exchange. Very high global inventories […]

Chemical industry summary Publicly traded US commodity chemical producers reported surprisingly good financial results for the recently completed third quarter. Margins in Q3 for the US polyolefin chain decreased sequentially with polymer prices falling more than feedstock costs. However, for Europe, the story was reversed with declining oil and naphtha prices falling faster than olefins […]

Chemical industry summary The deflation of global chemical prices continues following declining feedstock and oil/gas prices. Key olefins in the US are now hitting levels not seen since 2009 in some cases, not seen since 2003. Ethylene margins are starting to ease for US shale gas-based chemical producers as lower international prices have resulted from […]

Chemical industry summary Reflecting a lower cost basis, global commodity chemical prices continue to wilt as the global chemical industry adjusts to lower crude oil prices. Spot ethylene in Asia has recently traded near US$800 per MT, down from US$1,400 in July. Margins have eased for producers in all regions. The Asian ethylene/naphtha spread has […]