Acrylic Acid Price Trend and Forecast

Regional Price Overview

Get the latest insights on price movement and trend analysis of Acrylic Acid in different regions across the world (Asia, Europe, North America, Latin America, and the Middle East & Africa).

Acrylic Acid Price Trend for the H2 of 2022

Asia

The price of acrylic acid fell throughout the Asia-Pacific region during the said period. The upstream production and feedstock costs stabilized causing the industries to churn out products faster than the demand leading to stockpiling of products in the market. The market was still recovering from the covid related restrictions and supply shortages; hence the sentiments were shrouded by the fears of a global recession. The demand from the downstream paints and adhesives sectors was minimum. The price of acrylic acid averaged 1025 USD/MT (CIF, India) towards the end of December’22.

Europe

The decreasing prices of feedstock propylene and falling inquiries from the market caused the price trends for acrylic acid to tip towards the lower side of the scale. The economic downturn coupled with the looming speculations of recession has further reduced the offtakes from the market. The dwindling demand for acrylates further added to this trend causing acrylic acid prices to average 1465 USD/MT (CIF, France) in December’22.

North America

The price trends in the US domestic market followed the global outlook. With muted transitions and stockpiling of products in the market acrylic acid prices declined averaging 1318.80 USD/MT ( CIF, USA) in September’22. However, the prices inclined slightly in the next quarter as the market demand rebounded. Given the limited inventories, the increased offtakes caused the sellers to raise their quotations averaging 1850 USD/MT ( CIF, USA) in December’22.

Analyst Insight: The price of acrylic will likely incline during the coming months owing to the renewed downstream demand. The increasing market enquiries along with stabilized logistics will cause the prices to rise.

For the Second Quarter of 2022

Asia

Initially, the prices in Asia were higher as the factories were not running at optimum levels due to low market sentiments. However, this quarter saw a sharp decrease in acrylic acid prices for multiple reasons.

With the government easing covid restrictions, many industrial plants such as Yangtze INEOS and Celanese Nanjing restarted their manufacturing units and started churning more products in the market. This sudden change in the supply and demand dynamics led to massive stockpiling in the market, leading to prices falling. Acrylic acid market price tumbled from 14,786 RMB/MT in May 2022 to 13,939 RMB/MT (approx.) in June 2022.

Europe

Currently, the European market trend is the opposite of its Asian counterpart. Amidst the rising crude oil prices and inflated freight charges, the prices of almost all commodities are rising alarmingly.

The price of propylene, one of the primary feedstocks required for the chemical, reached around 1422 USD/MT FOB in Germany. The higher demand from the downstream sectors and the tightened supply of raw materials will likely inflate the price further.

Analyst Insight

According to Procurement Resource, the prices of acrylic acid will likely decrease in the coming quarter considering the current economic downturn. Despite the falling prices of feedstock propylene, the prices will fall as the muted market demand will lead to stockpiling of products in the market.

For the First Quarter of 2022

Asia

In March 2022, per ton price of acrylic acid was 15000 RMB in China. Rising demand for superabsorbent polymers and broad adoption of acrylic-based goods in emerging economies such as Asia-Pacific propelled the acrylic acid industry.

Because of environmental concerns in countries such as North America and Europe, strict government restrictions on the usage of acrylic acid were enacted, acting as a significant restricting factor for the acrylic acid market's growth.

The rising demand for poly (methyl methacrylate) or PMMA resins in different sectors, as well as the commercialization of bio-based acrylic acid, were predicted to provide a lot of potential prospects for this industry. As a result, manufacturers concentrate on R&D to identify bio-based sources of acrylic acid.

For the Fourth Quarter of 2021

Asia

Market activity in China fluctuated due to a variety of factors, the most notable of which was the abrupt emergence of a coal shortage in the country. The chemical rose to an extremely high value in a short period of time due to coal-related concerns, but eventually fell due to improved availability in the country.

Because of its reliance on China, the Indian market swung in a similar way. Despite strong offtakes from the domestic market, prices in the Indian market fell as well, despite the fact that they were already hanging at a very high figure. Finally, around the middle of November, acrylic acid price per ton was estimated to be around 2904 USD/MT.

Europe

The energy prices in the European market were soaring which was the primary reason of the rising commodity prices. The chemical’s price in Europe also followed a similar trajectory as other products supported by the sudden rebound of demand from the domestic market amidst limited availability and high cost of upstream.

As the prices rose consistently, the rates of downstream acrylates followed the same pricing dynamics while margins were shrinking every week in the domestic market. As the input cost witnessed an exorbitant hike in prices, the regional market trade activities did not help with the supply constraints.

North America

The effect of a manufacturing disruption caused by a winter storm in February was seen on the US market in this quarter as well. However, there was a significant increase in demand, with key downstream consumers reporting procurement issues.

Major manufacturers, on the other hand, significantly resumed their production activities after a long period of disruption. Another key issue for market participants were the increased upstream costs, which eventually resulted in significant inflationary pressure on downstream consumers. As a result, acrylic acid prices increased steadily in the United States throughout this quarter, reaching roughly 2200 USD/MT in October.

For First, Second and Third Quarters of 2021

Asia

Acrylic acid and feedstock propylene faced a global shortage during the first quarter of 2021 which impacted its prices in the Asian market. Key manufacturers in Asia reported production constraints.

For example, the acrylic acid manufacturing unit of Tansee shut down in Saudi Arabia, Zhenjiang Satellite Petrochem plant in China witnessed a fire accident while South Korea’s LG chem plant too observed a prolong shut down. Propylene prices were skyrocketing at the same time which ultimately caused acrylic acid prices to rise from 1130 USD/MT in January to 1690 USD/MT in March 2021 in China.

In the second quarter of 2021, the market witnessed mixed sentiments as demand fundamentals varied among different countries. In India, the demand for the chemical was dull as the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic slumped demand for most downstream products.

In the first half of the second quarter, however, the prices rose as a result of high freight costs as it was majorly imported but declined later as trade activities improved across major Indian ports. In China, during the first half of second quarter, the chemical prices declined but rose again later as the feedstock prices witnessed an increment. In India, acrylic acid prices were around 1317 USD/MT whereas in China it was recorded at 1310 USD/MT somewhere around the middle of the second quarter.

Market prices witnessed a prominent rise during the third quarter of 2021 as the prices of feedstock propylene surged as a result of high crude oil prices. The feedstock availability was limited due to the production halt in several plants which was followed by a congestion in ports during July and August leading to a price rise of the chemical along with the factor of high demand from downstream sectors.

The monthly average FOB acrylic acid prices in September in Qingdao-China were 2357 USD/MT which had increased by 417 USD/MT since July. India, a major importer of acrylic acid, faced supply chain disruptions from Middle East and China as a result of port congestions and restrictions due to covid which also encouraged the price hike in the region during the third quarter. The monthly average acrylic acid prices Ex Mumbai in September observed a rise of 3.7% per MT since July, at 2455.99 USD/MT.

Europe

The market in Europe witnessed an acute shortage of the product while demand was high in the region during the first quarter of 2021. Supply shortages in various countries and regions were reported as a consequence of bad weather conditions as transportation was disrupted by the freezing cold weather while railway lines chocked due to frosts.

Moreover, a force majeure was announced by Evonik and Radici on their acrylic acid plants in Germany owing to the poor weather conditions. In Europe, the prices remained high in the second quarter backed by inadequate availability and firm demand across the region. Soaring high freight costs across Asia-Europe and US-Europe trade routes were also another major reason behind the price rise along with high feedstock prices in US as a result of winter storm in February.

Production activities resumed in several European countries as the economies recovered which increased the demand for acrylic acid in the region mainly from the downstream industries such as paints and coatings and adhesives. The market witnessed a firm demand amid limited supply during the third quarter which sent ripples in the market increasing the prices exponentially in Europe.

The hurricane Ida caused supply chain disruptions in the US while in China the Ningbo port shut down in August. Freight costs skyrocketed in major trade routes across Asia and US. All these factors encouraged the hike in the prices of the chemical. Additionally, the natural gas supply to Europe was disrupted for two months as Gazprom shut down its supply for maintenance purposes. High demand from downstream industries like adhesives and paints and coatings also drove up the prices during the third quarter.

North America

During the first quarter, the market witnessed a strong demand from downstream sectors amid low supplies which increased the prices in the region. Acrylic acid prices rose consistently from 1490 USD/MT in January to 1610 USD/MT in March 2021 as feedstock propylene faced shortage during this period as a result of freezing weather conditions across US Gulf coast which led to a global shortage of crude oil derivatives.

Meanwhile, demand from downstream sectors like constructional adhesive, packaging, coating remained high. The prices soared during the second quarter as upstream supply faced disruptions amidst a rising demand for the product. The US Gulf faced climate related issues which caused a major shortage of upstream products like n-butanol, ethyl hexanol and propylene.

The high prices of the chemical were backed by a strong demand from the downstream industries. Acrylic acid price increase was noted from 1690 USD/MT to 1770 USD/MT from April to June in the US. Additionally, the prices of several downstream products of acrylic acid increased during this period due to its supply shortage.

During the third quarter of 2021, the prices escalated amidst high demand and tight supply in the region. The feedstock propylene prices surged as a result of high crude oil prices which in turn affected the prices of acrylic acid and downstream products causing them to rise.

In addition to this, the disruptions caused by Hurricane Ida in the US during August, affected the production in several plants of acrylic acid and propylene, as well as also the supply chains in the overseas market.

For instance, by the end of August, Dow was forced to shut down the acrylic acid manufacturing plant as a result of power outages caused by the hurricane. Meanwhile an increase in demand from downstream industries like coatings and adhesives due to a growth in the construction sector also contributed to the factors in the price rise of the chemical in the region.

For the Year 2020

Asia

In 2020, the market in Asia suffered due to weak global macroeconomics amid low demand from downstream sectors like adhesives, paints and coatings. Even though the industrial activities were recovering after the pandemic, they were affected by the resurgence of covid in several Asian countries which dampened the demand.

Scheduled turnarounds in Malaysia, Indonesia and Taiwan also curtailed the supplies. In India, the peak season was witnessed as the Diwali season approached. Butyl acrylate, a major trade grade in downstream acrylates, observed a downward trend since July 2020.

Europe

Some acrylate producers in Europe reported shutdowns for maintenance during the initial weeks of the third quarter which caused the domestic supply to tighten. Arkema, a leading producer, reported an increment in the prices of acrylic monomer in EU following the losses incurred in the last few quarters. The demand for downstream acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) increased and the margins rose. As buyer’s interest improved for ABS, the spot prices also registered double-digit increase by the end of the year.

North America

The market in North America witnessed a weak performance in around the third quarter of 2020 as the demand and supply fundamentals were hurt in US and Canada. Even though a slight gain in demand was reported from the adhesive, packaging and construction industries, the major acrylic acid producers observed little to no change in the quarterly numbers.

While the buying interests improved, the resurgence of coronavirus created a confusion among players. The pricing trend was pressured but improved in August as the gains of feedstock propylene extended.

Procurement Resource provides latest prices of Acrylic Acid. Each price database is tied to a user-friendly graphing tool dating back to 2014, which provides a range of functionalities: configuration of price series over user defined time period; comparison of product movements across countries; customization of price currencies and unit; extraction of price data as excel files to be used offline.