Meth Acrylic Acid Showcases Declining Prices in Saudi Arabia

Inconsistent regulations in supplies and reluctance among end-users caused problems in the ensurement of adequate supplies of Meth Acrylic Acid (MAA) in Saudi Arabia. The feedstock sulphuric acid prices were observed to deteriorate due to a decline in the prices of the downstream fertilizers sector.

According to the sources, OPEC decided to cut the production rates by 2 million barrels per day, mostly against criticism from the US due to political issues. OPEC made substantial cuts to its global crude oil demand growth. Although, this production cut has hurt US-led efforts to make war financially unsustainable for Russia, threatening a global economy already destabilized by Ukraine conflicts and risks. Oil prices have slipped in early trade due to Saudi Arabia and Washington continuing to clash over plans by OPEC to slash production.

The prices of MAA have fallen in Saudi Arabia during October 2022, with prices ranging at USD 1910/tonne MAA FOB Jizan with a monthly declination of USD 45/ton (-2.3%) as recorded by the ChemAnalyst pricing team data.

The demand for downstream paints, adhesives, and leather treatment agents has declined, relieving the cost pressure from the prices of MAA. The need for MAA from importing countries like China, Turkey, and the Netherlands has reduced, affecting the MAA market sentiments. However, the inventories of MAA have been observed to be falling in the domestic market with the traders and the suppliers, causing a stockpiling of the product in the companies like Hempel paints and Fosam Company Limited. This eventually led to a loss of revenue and working capital being tied up as goods during the period.

The freight charges from the Mediterranean to East Asia declined by 8%, also one of the primary reasons for the prices of Acrylates to drop in the Middle Eastern area. The supply chain woes disrupted the industrial areas and impacted the traders and the buyers.