Pure benzene: 92% swing upward

In the first half of the year, the domestic pure benzene market experienced twists and turns, but the general trend of upward volatility remained unchanged
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The market fluctuates up

According to Wang Qian, an analyst at Jinlianchuang, overall, the supply of pure benzene in the first half of the year continued to be tight, causing prices to fluctuate upward
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At the beginning of the year, the pure benzene market was relatively stable
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From April to May, demand in Europe and the United States was relatively good, and the imbalance between supply and demand drove the price of pure benzene to rise sharply.
Most resources in Asia entered Europe and the United States for arbitrage
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After entering June, the volume of pure benzene port reservoir area has been as low as around 60,000 tons, the market has maintained a tight balance, and driven by the continuous increase in crude oil, the price of pure benzene has slowly increased
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According to statistics, the average price of pure benzene in the first half of the year was 6,619 yuan, and the average price of the same period last year was 4,217 yuan, a year-on-year increase of 57.
03%, while the average price in the second half of last year was only 3,720 yuan
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Downstream demand support

"In the first half of the year, the turbulence of the pure benzene market was mainly caused by the increase in downstream demand exceeding the increase in pure benzene supply, and the imbalance between supply and demand
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In the first half of the year, only one set of 400,000 tons/year in Sinochem Quanzhou was put into operation in the pure benzene industry, while the downstream styrene, aniline, ketone, and caprolactam industries had 2.
67 million tons/year in new installations put into operation, which is an upward belt for the pure benzene market.
It's a huge pulling power
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From the perspective of supply and demand, the output of new pure benzene equipment in the first half of the year was 177,000 tons, and the amount of maintenance losses was 525,200 tons; while the downstream loss of pure benzene consumption was 377,100 tons, and the consumption of new downstream equipment was 549,400 tons.
The supply gap of pure benzene is about 523,500 tons
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In the downstream, under the support of rising raw material prices, tight supply and demand, and favorable economic environment, the market price of styrene has risen significantly year-on-year, and its role in supporting pure benzene as a raw material cannot be underestimated
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In addition, Jiangsu Fuqiang's 100,000 tons/year aniline and Hualu Hengsheng 200,000 tons/year cyclohexanone units were put into production, which also increased the upward momentum of the pure benzene market
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Prices continue to rise

　　Regarding the later trend of pure benzene, He Junsong, a salesperson of Jilin Petrochemical, analyzed that pure benzene will release more production capacity in the second half of the year, but the downstream will not be outdone, and a large number of installations will be put into operation
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　　Specifically, the newly-added pure benzene production capacity in the third quarter includes the 1.
3 million ton/year installation of Zhejiang Petrochemical Phase II, the 140,000 ton/year installation of Gulei Petrochemical, and the 50,000 ton/year installation of Dongming and Qicheng Petrochemical; the release of production capacity in the fourth quarter has Luqing 50,000 tons/year installation, Shenghong Petrochemical 1.
37 million tons/year installation
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　　From a downstream perspective, new styrene capacity continues to be released
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Gulei Petrochemical’s 600,000 tons/year plant and Inner Mongolia Qinghua’s 200,000 tons/year plant are scheduled to be put into operation in the third quarter; Shandong Lihuayi’s 720,000 tons/year plant and Wanhua’s 650,000 tons/year plant are scheduled to be put into operation in the fourth quarter
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In addition, CITIC Guoan's 200,000-ton/year plant is also planned to be put into operation, but the time for putting it into operation has not yet been determined
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　　The downstream caprolactam newly added production facilities are mainly concentrated in the third quarter, including Inner Mongolia Qinghua's 200,000 tons/year device, Lunan Chemical's 300,000 tons/year device and Hualu Hengsheng's 300,000 tons/year device
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In addition, Yantai Wanhua’s 400,000-ton/year aniline plant is also planned to be put into operation in the third quarter
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　　From this, it is not difficult to see that the growth rate of pure benzene production capacity is not as fast as downstream, and the tight supply of pure benzene may hardly undergo a substantial change.
The second half of the year is still in a tight balance
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　　However, from July to August, domestic and foreign trade increased, and the tension of pure benzene in East China may be eased
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In addition, the styrene maintenance equipment is concentrated in October to November, and the purchase of raw materials will also be reduced, which will bring certain resistance to the rise of the pure benzene market
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　　"From the perspective of regional flow, after the downstream units of pure benzene in Fujian and Shandong were put into operation, the locals could not meet the new demand, and the source of pure benzene was shifted from East China to Shandong and Fujian
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After the downstream units of pure benzene were put into operation in the fourth quarter, the supply was tight again.
, The north or even tighter, the price of pure benzene may continue to rise by then
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" He Junsong said in an analysis
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