Prices start to dive / First part of quarterly reductions reflected in the monthly transactions / More decreases expected in November / Sales in crisis mode

In the first month of Q4, European suppliers of engineering thermoplastics were no longer able to hold on to the previous rollover line. Too many quarterly agreements had been reduced, which meant that the first decreases also had to be granted in the regular monthly transactions. Prices collapsed on a broad front. As regards the commodity-related materials, PP compounds rolled over, whereas the ABS materials fell back slightly.

The main reason for the falling prices was once again the subdued demand. The misery in the automotive segment has since turned into a crisis, which is increasingly also affecting industry in general as well as other sectors such as E&E. Demand for engineering plastics is declining in parallel with the economic mood.

For November, the prospects for producers are thus again not very good. Further instalments of the quarterly reductions will be due and customers will not hesitate to insist on them. In order to hold on to their business, producers will have no alternative but to bite the bullet. To make matters worse, the dam has now broken as far as the benzene reference price is concerned, having now undergone a triple-digit nosedive. This means that, even on the cost side, there is nothing left to provide stability. Anyone with prospects of doing good business this month can certainly afford a cold smile.

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