The US purified terephthalic acid (PTA) contract fell 4.45 cents/lb ($76/mt) from November to December to 60.09 cents/lb on a 6.5-cent/lb decrease in the month's paraxylene contract, a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) producer said Thursday.
The PX contract was partially settled Friday at 67.5 cents/lb, but BP had not concluded with its buyers, sources said then, and this prevented the formula-derived PTA contract from getting done. In the end, BP settled with their buyers at the same price as other participants.
PET prices were also under pressure as the weak demand upstream was felt downstream.
"We'll try to keep the decrease at 4 cents/lb," a bottle resin producer said.
Aside from lower PTA contracts, monoethylene glycol contracts shed 5 cents/lb, which pulled down the overall costs for PET makers by 5.48 cents/lb. If producers can keep the resin decrease to 4 cents/lb, they would be able to preserve a nearly 1.5-cent/lb margin increase.
"It's still early in the month, so we'll see how it goes," a source said on the potential margin increase.
November US PET contracts were talked at 87-88 cents/lb delivered for mid-sized level converters.
