Chemical Insights Blog

Sign Up Today

Chemical Supply and Demand (4)

Graph indicating the European Unsaturated Polyester Resin market fluctuations.

5 min read

Unsaturated Polyester Resins: Road to Recovery

Both European and US unsaturated polyester resin (UPR) prices saw back-to-back monthly increases throughout the first half of 2021. The market...

OrbiChem360's tradeflow wheel.

6 min read

Polyurethanes & Intermediates: Healthy Demand Keeps Isocyanates Markets Strong

Demand for polyurethane (PU) feedstocks is high as construction projects ramp up requirements. That, and the increased consumer focus on comfort at...

Pipeline in an ammonia industrial plant.

2 min read

Ammonia Shortage Triggers Supply Chain Ripple Effect

South Korea’s urea supply crunch is a stark reminder of the value in supply chain diversification. With very little means of meeting its own urea...

1 min read

Maleic Anhydride - New entrants to market set to cause disruption

Global maleic anhydride markets have experienced a sharp upturn in late 2020 and 2021 following the negative growth seen in 2020 as markets continued...

1 min read

Who is making money in the polyester chain? Changes and challenges in 2022

Depending on the origin and destination, the cost of freight today represents almost one-third of the cfr value/price of exports imports by America...

2 min read

The natural gas price surge and its impact on chemical markets

Global natural gas prices surged throughout 2021 due to a combination of key maintenance works, fire outages at extraction and processing sites,...

1 min read

Energy Cost Shock May Ripple Into 2022 Phenol Markets

Hopes that the global phenol prices were on a downtrend in Q4 were dashed in October as producers in the US and Europe announced plans to increase...

1 min read

Energy Policy in China and its Impact on some Chemicals Production

Energy is the latest and unexpected factor impacting petrochemical, chemical, and polymer industries in all regions of the world in Q4 2021....

1 min read

When Will The Global Shortage of Caustic Soda Ease?

The market has tightened substantially since Hurricane Ida hit the US in August. Demand for caustic soda has recovered faster than expected, however,...

1 min read

Orthoxylene & Phthalic Anhydride The Bumpy Road To Recovery

The orthoxylene and phthalic anhydride supply chain has shown relatively strong recovery throughout 2021; however, this has not been without its...

1 min read

Bad Weather, Supply Shortages And Covid-19 Continue To Disrupt Isocyanates Markets

The MDI market in North America has been tight for some time and the situation has worsened after Ida hit the Gulf and proceeded to move inland....

1 min read

Tight Supply Keeps Asian Acrylic Acid And Acrylates Market On Its Toes

Across Asia, demand is picking up as the market for acrylic acid and acrylates is entering its peak season, although there are indications that the...