| | Copyright violation is a serious offence. Any distribution or forwarding of information which is not expressly permitted by your subscription agreement is a copyright violation. ICIS pricing will be using software to monitor unauthorised electronic redistribution of reports. Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information Limited. ICIS pricing is a member of the Reed Elsevier plc group. | |
Editor Ben Lefebvre, ben.lefebvre@icis.com
NOTE: For full details on the criteria ICIS pricing uses in making these price assessments, visit www.icispricing.com and click on “methodology”.
Subscriber note: The price deltas for the spot quotes in the Glycerine (US Gulf) report dated 7 January 2009 are based on assessments published on 24 December 2008.
US glycerine prices held in their previous price range, buyers and sellers said during the week ended 7 January.
The spot market was quiet as most buyers and sellers were still returning to work from the winter holiday season.
Market participants said one of their main concerns was the state of the US biodiesel industry, which supplies crude glycerine. With biodiesel production believed to be 60-70% of capacity, a refined glycerine trader and a producer said crude glycerine supply could become tight once refined glycerine demand revives.
A crude glycerine distributor said that supply of standard-quality crude glycerine was still strong, if tightened slightly compared with months past. Low-quality crude has disappeared from the market as smaller biodiesel producers go out of business, the distributor said.
Contract settlements put most Q1 vegetable glycerine accounts in the 35-50 cents/lb ($772-1,102/tonne) range. Tallow glycerine contracts were also at 33-50 cents/lb, while pharmaceutical-grade glycerine at 60-70 cents/lb starting on 1 January, buyers and sellers said. The above table will reflect the new contract next week.
In Asia, glycerine prices were heard at $450-530/tonne CFR China, up by $50 on the high end due to tightening supply.
Crude glycerine prices tightened into a 4-6 cents/lb range due to lagging demand, sources said.
This week in ICIS news ( www.icis.com):
06-Jan-09 13:02 OUTLOOK '09: Chemicals makers face no ordinary downturn
06-Jan-09 12:53 Dow to pursue legal action over failed Kuwaiti venture
06-Jan-09 09:40 OUTLOOK '09: Higher biodiesel output to depress Asia glycerine
05-Jan-09 22:30 US chemical leaders caution Obama on stimulus plan
31-Dec-08 23:00 OUTLOOK ’09: US biofuels industry expected to consolidate
