Stagnant Pentaerythritol prices in Europe amid weak demand supply dynamics

For the past couple of weeks of Feb 2024, the Pentaerythritol price trend has been stagnant In the European region as producers are not changing their quotations unchanged amid moderate demand and supply dynamics.

According to market reports in January 2024, there was a slight improvement in the Eurozone's manufacturing Purchasing Manager's Index, attributed to a rise in new orders. This suggests a lessening of the decline in manufacturing sector activities. However, it remained below 50 amid a decline in output rates. Moreover, in Feb 2024, the orders for Pentaerythritol remained moderate for stocking purposes from domestic buyers. The consumption of food thickeners was consistent in the food sector amid a rise in food inflation and food item prices. While the pharmaceutical sector saw a steady yet moderate demand, inquiries from domestic insecticide manufacturers remained weak.  Simultaneously, orders were sluggish from Polyester manufacturers in the textile sector amid sluggish demand for end products due to the off-season.

Meanwhile, the production costs declined slightly due to a reduction in feedstock Formaldehyde prices in mid-February amid a shift in purchasing activities and no significant change in the upstream Methanol costs.

However, at the beginning of the month, the Pentaerythritol price trend continued to showcase bullish movement, and producers raised their quotations by 3.2% amid firm demand from the buyers and limited availability of supplies in the European market. The availability of Pentaerythritol stocks was inadequate in the market amid moderate production rates.

At the same time, the stocking activities and offtakes were firm from the buyers amid affliction in global supply chain activities. The Pentaerythritol supplies were delayed to international buyers amid supply chain disruption and increased ship traffic at ship routes due to attacks on the vessels and Oil tankers passing through the Red Sea in the Middle Eastern region.

At the end of the last week of February 2024, the Pentaerythritol (PENT) FOB Hamburg quotations in Germany hovered at USD 1600/MT, according to the ChemAnalyst data sources.

As per the estimation, Pentaerythritol prices will witness a slight reduction in value in the upcoming weeks. The product availability will remain firm in the regional market, and the demand will likely remain moderately low from the buyers amid the off-season in the Polyester and agrochemicals market. The consumption rates of insecticides generally improve with the increase in temperature. So, the Pentaerythritol orders are likely to increase during the spring season. Furthermore, the cost support is anticipated to decline in feedstock Formaldehyde prices and will negatively impact the production costs of Pentaerythritol.