Western European production of ethylene, propylene and butadiene in the third quarter of this year was down from the same period of 2011, data from the Association of Petrochemical Producers in Europe showed Monday.
Ethylene, propylene and butadiene production in the quarter was 4.840 million mt, 3.634 million mt and 512,000 mt, respectively. This represents year-on-year falls of 4.9%, 2.8% and 4.8%.
European steam crackers were dialed down in a low demand environment, sources said. EU chemicals production fell by 2.2% year-on-year in the first eight months of 2012, the latest Cefic Chemicals Trends Report released last week showed.
Stock depletion in Q2 prompted some replenishment in Q3, sources said.
