North American monoethylene glycol sellers were looking at Europe as an outlet for exports following a drop in Asian prices, industry sources said.
Shipping reports noted parcels fixed from Port Neches and Point Comfort, Texas, to Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp this week. US material was heard headed to Europe for en- March delivery, marking it the first imports from the country in recent months.
In the US, MEG demand has been soft for most of the winter due to weaker than expected demand for polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and anti-freeze. US spot export prices have been talked around 43-44 cents/lb ($947-$970/mt) FOB USG for much of the first quarter.
The European market was similarly listless with the same fundamentals impacting PET and anti-freeze.
"This might add further pressure to European prices," a source said.
Other sources, however, expressed doubt on the impact of US imports on Northwest European prices.
"There are not many parcels and it's mostly technical grade," one source said.
European offers were unmoved from last week's level of Eur900-920/mt ($1,188-1,215/mt) FCA NWE and Eur880-890/mt CIF NWE.
Despite the seeming weakness in Europe, it remained the best netback for US cargoes due to the lower prices in Asia. China's import prices were assessed Thursday at $997/mt CFR China.
MEG prices have been on a downtrend due to high inventory in China and have remained below the $1,000/mt level since March 15. MEG prices have been falling since March 5, when they were assessed at $1,096/mt CFR China.
