24 June 2008 09:45 [Source: ICIS news]
SINGAPORE (ICIS news)--Refined glycerine offers in Asia were reported almost 30% lower than levels three months ago on the back of high inventories and steadily falling demand, producers and traders said on Tuesday.
Offers now stood at about $1,350/tonne FOB (free on board) SE Asia (southeast Asia), having peaked at around the $1,900/tonne FOB SE Asia mark in March, amid an influx of co-product crude glycerine from US and European biodiesel manufacturers.
“I heard some big buyers are looking at [glycerine prices] lower than $1,000/tonne [FOB SE Asia],” an oleochemical trader based in Malaysia said, adding that buying interest at current offers in the mid-$1,300s/tonne FOB Malaysia was thin, and that sellers were likely to drop their prices even further.
Wary of the falling prices, end-users have been only buying on a back-to-back basis, resulting in mounting inventory pressure at various regional producers.
Traders who had earlier taken forward positions found themselves eager to offload their cargoes, as they quickly locked in their profits before prices slid further.
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