Producers continue to experience a good level of demand which is keeping the market tight.
PS prices in Europe were assessed €20/mt lower from September to October, according to GC Intelligence market analysis.
The main reason for the decrease was the fall in costs. Styrene settled lower in October and polystyrene (PS) prices followed the movement.
While there is an element of negotiations, many contracts are based on costs and most of the time it is inevitable that PS contract prices will follow costs.
However, good demand and a tighter market meant producers managed to resist the full decrease in costs. This therefore allowed them to widen margins.
The European PS market is showing a similar trend as many other polymers, namely a tighter market supporting a margin recovery for producers.
Nevertheless, some buyers managed to secure bigger decreases, more in line with the styrene movement.
But these were the exceptions as were those accounts that were subject to smaller decreases, such as minus €10/mt.
And with upstream costs now on the way up, PS prices in Europe could post increases in November.