In Poland, participants in the polyethylene market hope for a demand recovery in the second week of the month after a weak start in May. Producers of finished goods were hoping for a decrease in material costs, which prompted them to take active steps in the first working week of the month, including collecting offers and negotiating prices. It is worth noting that at the end of May, important industry fair will take place, which may attract the attention of key market players, increasing activity in the coming weeks.
After the drop in polyethylene prices in the first week of May, many market players expected further price reductions in the following weeks, although at a smaller scale. These changes will mainly depend on demand from converters.
- The beginning of the month was characterized by weak activity, as converters focused mainly on price analysis, which limited market dynamics in the first days of May;
- Several traders noticed growing interest from HDPE converters for blow molding, with potential for greater activity in the future;
- Most European producers decided to lower the prices;
- After more than a year of shutdown, Rompetrol restarted its 75,000 tpy LDPE plant;
- Some traders recorded a drop in demand from agricultural film producers;
- The LLDPE DOW Chemical factory in Tarragona, with an annual capacity of 500,000 tons, resumed operations on May 5 after a break caused by a power supply failure.
