LONDON (ICIS)–Average yearly recycled polypropylene (R-PP) post-industrial black bale values in 2024 to date are at their lowest level on record on the back of the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on key end-use sectors such as construction and horticulture. May monthly average post-industrial black bale prices in 2024 reached the lowest level seen in […]

SAO PAULO (ICIS)–Petrochemicals producers in the production hub of Altamira, in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas, keep declaring force majeure as a severe drought halved water supplies to industrial players. On Thursday, a spokesperson for Cabot said to ICIS the company has also declared force majeure for carbon black from its Altamira facilities, which adds […]

HOUSTON (ICIS)–Brazil producer Petrobras announced that its executive board has approved the resumption of operating activities of the fertilizer plant Araucaria Nitrogenados in the state of Parana. The plant has been mothballed since 2020 and the producer said it is now expected to be restarted in the second half of 2025. Located next to the […]

LONDON (ICIS)–Business momentum in the eurozone hit the highest level in 12 months in May, pushing further into growth territory as service sector orders surged and the manufacturing industry showed signs of recovery. The eurozone composite purchasing managers’ index (PMI) rose to 52.2 during the month compared to 51.7 in April as stronger demand buoyed […]

SEOUL (ICIS)–Japan’s government aims to marshal $1 trillion in public and private investment over the next decade to fuel economic growth and meet its climate commitments, the chairman of the Japan Petrochemical Industry Association (JPCA) said on Friday. To catalyze this massive investment, the Japanese government has launched issuance of climate transition bonds totaling more […]

SEOUL (ICIS)–The European chemical industry is bracing for continued weakness in 2024, with demand remaining soft globally due to sluggish growth in the US and a slowdown in China, an industry official said on Friday. “The European industrial sectors are out of recession but still a long way from any dynamic growth,” European Chemical Industry […]

SEOUL (ICIS)–The global petrochemical supply glut will take some time to run its course and focusing on portfolio optimization and higher value products would be the way forward, LG Chem CEO Hak Cheol Shin said on Friday. “China will continue to build although there is a slowdown in new projects,” said Shin, who is also […]

LONDON (ICIS)–Freepoint Eco-Systems Belgium NV is planning to build an 80,000 tonne/year pyrolysis-based chemical recycling plant in Ghent, Belgium, the company announced in a press release. The plant will use mixed plastic waste diverted from incineration as an input, although there were no further details of the grade of mixed plastic waste that will be […]

TORONTO (ICIS)–A possible freight rail strike in Canada is not likely to begin before mid-July, according to rail carrier Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC). The ongoing uncertainties over the looming strike make it hard for Canadian chemical, fertilizer and other industrial producers, in particular exporters, to prepare for a work stoppage. After about 9,300 unionized […]

SAO PAULO (ICIS)–Most of Rio Grande do Sul’s industrial plants remain shut or operating at very low rates as the Brazilian state reels from the floods, with the restart at the Triunfo petrochemicals hub an exception rather than the norm, a chemicals consultant at MaxiQuim said to ICIS. Mauricio Jaroski, a director at the Porto […]