HOUSTON (ICIS)–The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is forecasting higher corn exports and lower ending stocks but otherwise had minimal changes within the December World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimate (WASDE) report. This current corn outlook is projecting there to be higher exports and lower ending stocks with exports raised by 25m bushels to 2.1bn […]

LONDON (ICIS)–The ICIS Northwest Europe ammonia-to-hydrogen price eased back to its lowest value in six weeks on the final day of November, but larger falls were witnessed in values of other forms of hydrogen generation. The ammonia-to-hydrogen price fell by €0.08/kg on a weekly basis to stand at €6.07/kg on 30 November, the lowest value […]

SAO PAULO (ICIS)–Brazilian petrochemicals sources have said the slight hike in polymers’ import tariffs will have little overall impact, although it is expected to help shore up margins for domestic producers. Earlier in November, Brazil’s Chamber of Foreign Commerce (Gecex-Camex) decided to hike import tariffs on several polymers, partly reversing a decision adopted in 2022 […]

MUMBAI (ICIS)–Profitability of specialty chemicals producers in India is being weighed down by poor demand amid the global economic slowdown and volatile crude prices, with market conditions unlikely to improve in the next three to four months. Competition from imports, largely coming from China, also affects local players amid weakness in demand in the eurozone […]

SAO PAULO (ICIS)–Argentina’s petrochemicals players are bracing for a severe and potentially year-long economic contraction as President Elect Javier Milei implements his shock recipes for the country’s beleaguered economy. Last week, Argentinians showed with clarity their desire for change electing far-right and libertarian Milei for the highest office with more than 56% of the votes. His […]

LONDON (ICIS)–The ICIS Northwest Europe ammonia-to-hydrogen price increased marginally on a weekly basis heading towards December, with a similar move reported on low-carbon hydrogen while baseload electrolysis saw a solid increase. The ammonia-to-hydrogen price increased by €0.04/kg on a weekly basis to €6.15/kg on 23 November, continuing the recent trend over the past seven weeks […]

HOUSTON (ICIS)–There is no doubt that the circular economy has become one of the biggest priorities in the plastics value chain but market participants continue to question how recycling can grow to become more generally acceptable and how they will be able to access enough feedstock to ensure viability. Turning more towards chemical recycling is […]

HOUSTON (ICIS)–A CSX freight rail train derailed on Thursday morning near Livingston, south of Lexington, Kentucky, involving 16 railcars, including two molten sulphur railcars that breached and caused a fire, officials said. When molten sulphur burns it is known to release sulphur dioxide. The Kentucky government declared an emergency and authorities were encouraging people in […]

SAO PAULO (ICIS)–Global demand for polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is “starting to improve” but the market’s overcapacities may take years to be absorbed, an executive at Brazilian producer Unipar said this week. Alexandre Castro, business director for PVC, said Unipar’s commitment to Brazil remains firm despite historically high input costs, adding the company’s chlorine division is […]

LONDON (ICIS)–The Polish government has defended its national gas storage regulation to ICIS on Friday following its referral to the European court system by the European Commission (EC) The EC announced on Thursday 16 November it was referring Poland to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) “for imposing restrictive requirements on companies […]