Traders in East China said Thursday they see the price of toluene coming off the current historically high levels next week amid bearish external and domestic factors.
It is currently at about Yuan 9,000/mt, or $1,172.97/mt on an import parity basis, a level seen only twice in the last five years, according to Platts data -- in October-November last year and May-July 2008.
"It will depend on how crude prices and eurozone issues play out. If it continues to be bad, this could happen," said a trader based in China.
Other traders said incoming volumes could probably push toluene off these levels. One trader estimated that about 40,000 mt of toluene will arrive in East China between the end of May and mid-June, pushing stocks to around 80,000-90,000 mt and exerting pressure on domestic prices.
Toluene inventory in East China is estimated to be around 50,000 mt this week.
On Wednesday, Platts assessed the domestic price of toluene in East China at Yuan 9,075/mt, down Yuan 75/mt from Tuesday.
