Morpholine Price Trend and Forecast

Regional Price Overview

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

For the Fourth Quarter of 2021

Asia

Diethylene Glycol prices continued to rise in October, aided by robust domestic demand. The increasing cost of this raw material also aided the product morpholine's upward price trajectory, as raw material demand faced competition from polymers. In response to the narrowing demand-supply imbalance, downstream morpholine prices in India were reduced by nearly 10% in the first week of December.

Morpholine prices were recorded at 3700 USD/MT CIF Chennai. In China, feedstock DEG prices continued to fall throughout Q4, alleviating cost pressure on downstream morpholine. Inventory levels remained high despite stagnated demand and steady state operating rates, which kept the available material under pressure.

Europe

DEG maintained a bullish rally all through the third quarter, but the rate of price increase slowed in the second half due to increased production and stable demand. As a result, cost pressure on downstream morpholine was intense in Q4. DEG demand was described as stable, owing to increased offtakes from downstream industries. This created an opportunity for market participants to enhance their profits.

North America

Access to the feedstock DEG advanced throughout the quarter as a result of increased upstream ethylene supply following a slow Q3. Prices of ethylene oxide remained strong in Q4, although they stabilized towards the end of the quarter due to the winter holiday rush.

The market saw increased buying interest in Q4 as downstream demand increased. Diethylene glycol imports remained restricted as well, owing to high freight costs on Middle East-Asia-US shipping routes and a lengthy transit time. Thus, sluggish domestic supply and restricted imports resulted in a scarcity of DEG and, as a result, of morpholine.

For First, Second and Third Quarters of 2021

Asia

Diethyl Glycol supplies remained constrained in first quarter, as the majority of upstream ethylene was diverted to PET manufacturing, followed by several plant shutdowns during the Chinese lunar new year holidays in mid-February. This diversion lowered the quantity of DEG available for the manufacture of morpholine.

This resulted in a supply shortage in the Chinese market. At the start of the quarter, demand prospects were dimmed by substantial margins in the Southeast Asian region, as the second COVID wave restricted industrial and commercial operations in India, while supply uncertainties persisted as activity in Guangdong province's key trading port was restricted due to rising COVID cases. Due to the general lack of demand, India's overall pricing trend remained downward.

The overall market outlook for Q3 2021 reflected mixed emotions across the Asia Pacific region. Diethylene Glycol supply for morpholine production increased in the Indian market. Increased freight costs and limited material availability resulted in price volatility in the country. As a result of this price volatility, morpholine prices were also affected.

Europe

DEG supplies in the European region were sluggish in Q1 2021, as several refineries operated at reduced capacity due to the cold weather in the Northwest European region, accompanied by transportation disruptions along the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp trail due to high water levels.

Importers' fears were heightened further by the absence of resources from the United States. This resulted in lower-than-usual morpholine production for the European markets. DEG supplies in the European region were enhanced in the second quarter of 2021, owing to a recovery in industrial operational rates following the winter season and a reintroduction of raw material supplies, which reestablished European markets for morpholine.

Prices of DEG increased significantly in the European region during the third quarter of 2021. Market demand was also under pressure. This resulted in a decrease in the availability of DEG for the manufacture of morpholine.

North America

The supplies were harmed in the first quarter of 2021 due to a decline in upstream DEG production due to the harsh freezing meteorological conditions in the USA gulf region, which forced regional plants to shut down. Arbitrage with Asia became more favorable as national buyers had become more receptive to Asian supplies.

Supplies in the North American region enhanced quarter-on-quarter, as the restoration of the Gulf Coast's industrial infrastructure resulted in increased availability of the feedstock, as several producers increased their DEG production rates in the United States. Domestic demand bolstered across the North American region in the third quarter of 2021, and raw material supplies improved during the quarter as a result of improved plant run rates following hurricane Ida's impact.

Increased refinery utilization in the United States resulted in an increase in the stockpile of upstream feedstock, including DEG. Demand for DEG increased during the quarter from downstream sectors such as polyester resins, plasticizers, and humectants.

For the Year 2020

Asia

In Asia, decreased demand from the polyester industry resulted in an oversupply of diethylene glycol (DEG), a critical feedstock for morpholine. In the first half of 2020, a lack of volume offtakes resulted in a sharp decline in the pricing curve for diethylene glycol. However, as market fundamentals improved, prices of the raw material increased gradually in the third quarter.

The Asia Pacific region's ammonia supply eased in the July-September quarter as several Southeast Asian producers restarted normal operations following the lifting of COVID-led lockdown restrictions. The integration of the two factors resulted in an increase in the supply of the chemical and a decrease in prices.

Europe

Europe imports DEG from the United States. In the wake of hurricane Laura in August, approximately one-third of the US production was curtailed, resulting in reduced stock availability in Europe. This resulted in a morpholine supply shortage in the European region.

North America

Throughout 2020, DEG demand lagged behind the increase in supply. Reduced exports due to transportation barriers resulted in a supply shortage in the domestic market, further pressuring DEG prices in the region. The downward trend resulted in low DEG prices for morpholine production, lowering morpholine prices as well.

Procurement Resource provides latest prices of Morpholine. 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; customisation of price currencies and unit; extraction of price data as excel files to be used offline.