The Northwest European orthoxylene contract price for March has been confirmed as fully settled at Eur940/mt ($1,291/mt) FD NWE, sources said Wednesday.
The settlement represents a Eur25/mt decrease from February, following a Eur40/mt decrease in February and three consecutive rollovers prior to that, according to Platts data.
The initial settlement was reported Wednesday, and further buyers and sellers subsequently followed.
Sources pointed to low Asian OX prices and the threat of cheap Asian imports of downstream phthalic anhydride as reasons for an OX decline, while the market for co-product paraxylene has been struggling with weak demand and low prices.
But producers said gasoline and naphtha prices had been increasing, creating upward pressure on prices from the feedstock side.
NWE spot prices for OX fell to $1,085/mt FOB ARA last Friday, down from $1,215/mt at the end of January and $1,305/mt at the start of the year, following falls in Asian prices and other xylene isomers.
In early March 2013 the contract price was far higher at Eur1,130/mt, Platts data showed.
