The market price of pure benzene in Asia has shown a downward trend recently. The main reason is the increase in market inventories.
Spot price of pure benzene in September has fallen below $850/tonne (FOB, South Korea), while it remained above $870/ton in the second half of August. According to ICIS data, China's pure benzene stocks were 158,800 tons from the end of August. It rose to 166,100 tons. Although the increase in stocks is not large, the stock of pure benzene in China has been declining in the past few weeks, indicating that the increase in stocks is changing the market trend of pure benzene in Asia.
A Chinese trader said that the rebound in stocks in the week of September 7 caused the price of pure benzene in China's domestic market to fall. Since July, due to the weakening of the RMB against the US dollar, the price of pure benzene in China's domestic market has shown an upward trend, with the price of imported products. The gap continues to shrink, and it also prompts Chinese buyers to consider purchasing foreign stocks.
Pure benzene is the main chemical raw material used in the production of other basic chemicals, such as styrene monomer, phenol and caprolactam. There is a possibility of further escalation of the ongoing trade war between the United States and China, which inhibits the sentiment of pure benzene in Asia.
So far, there is no clear solution to the trade dispute between the world's two major economies. A Singaporean trader said: 'As the impact of trade disputes is still unclear, most participants in the pure benzene market remain cautious. '