Global petrochemical prices for March fall!

1. © 2013 Platts, McGraw Hill Financial. All rights reserved.
Global Petrochemical Prices Fell 1% in
March on Softer Crude Oil Prices
HOUSTON, April 1, 2014
Additional media contact: Elizabeth Catalano at elizabeth.catalano@platts.com or
+44 207 176 6024.

2. Naphtha prices fell just less than $1/mt
last month
• Price losses in the global petrochemical markets reflected
price declines in world crude oil markets. Also tugging on
prices was naphtha -- a primary raw input for
petrochemicals and one which tends to establish the
value of olefins, polymers and other products. Expressed
as a monthly average, naphtha prices fell just less than
$1/mt last month.
• Petrochemicals are used in the manufacturing of plastic,
rubber, nylon and other consumer products and are
utilized in manufacturing, construction, pharmaceuticals,
aviation, electronics and nearly every commercial
industry.
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3. March Petrochemical Index
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4. Platts Petrochemicals Analytics:
Shale Gas to Polyethylene
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Or visit www.platts.com/ppa

5. Global ethylene prices globally fell
• OLEFINS
• Prices of olefins – a group of hydrocarbon compounds which are
the building blocks to many petrochemicals – were mostly flat in
March on the back of the little changed naphtha prices.
•
• Global ethylene prices globally fell less than 1% to $1,287/mt in
March, down just $4/mt from the average February price of
$1,291/mt. Polyethylene, a polymer produced from ethylene, fell
2% to $1,622/mt in March, down from $1,655/mt in February.
•
• Global propylene prices averaged $1,406/mt in March, up $1 from
the February average of $1,405/mt. Polypropylene, the polymer
produced from propylene, slipped less than half a percent to
$1,622/mt, following a February average of $1,629/mt.
•
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7. Paraxylene posted the largest decline
• AROMATICS
• Prices of aromatics – a group of scented hydrocarbons with benzene rings
used to make a variety of petrochemicals –were lower in March.
Paraxylene posted the largest decline, falling 5% to $1,173/mt, down from
the February average of $1,232/mt. Benzene prices fell 3% to $1,353/mt,
down from $1,392/mt in February. Toluene also was down 3% to
$1,073/mt, down from $1,104/mt in February.
•
• Petrochemical prices in March took little direction from global equity
markets. The London Stock Exchange Index (FTSE) fell 3% in March, while
the Down Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) climbed 1% during the same
period. The Nikkei 225 was relatively unchanged throughout the month,
falling less 0.10%.
•
• To access a summary of the March performance of each of the seven key
petrochemicals included in the PGPI, visit this link:
http://www.platts.com/newsfeature/2014/Petrochemicals/pgpi/index.
•
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8. Stay connected to the markets
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9. Make sense of the issues and opportunities
created by shale gas in North America
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10. The PGPI
• The PGPI reflects a compilation of the daily price assessments of physical
spot market ethylene, propylene, benzene, toluene, paraxylene, low-
density polyethylene (LDPE) and polypropylene as published by Platts and
is weighted by the three regions of Asia, Europe and the United States.
Used as a price reference, a gauge of sector activity, and a measure of
comparison for determining the profitability of selling a barrel of crude oil
intact or refining it into products, the PGPI was first published by Platts in
August 2007.
• Published daily in a real-time news service Platts Petrochemical Alert and
other Platts publications, the PGPI is anchored by Platts’ robust and long-
established price assessment methodology and the firm’s 100-year history
of energy price reporting.
• Platts petrochemicals experts are available for media interviews. A sample
list of experts may be found at the Platts Media Center. For more
information on petrochemicals, visit the Platts website at www.platts.com.
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11. About Platts
• About Platts: Founded in 1909, Platts is a leading global provider of energy,
petrochemicals, metals and agriculture information and a premier source of
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approximately 900 employees in more than 15 offices worldwide. Additional
information is available at http://www.platts.com.
•
• About McGraw Hill Financial: McGraw Hill Financial (NYSE: MHFI), a financial
intelligence company, is a leader in credit ratings, benchmarks and analytics for the
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•
• Additional media contact: Elizabeth Catalano at elizabeth.catalano@platts.com or
+44 207 176 6024.
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12. © 2013 Platts, McGraw Hill Financial. All rights reserved.
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