Global MX supply and demand will tend to balance in the second half of the year

Recently, market participants said that entering the second half of the year, the global mixed xylene (MX) market supply and demand situation will tend to balance
.
Affected by the resumption of production after the shutdown of MX devices in Japan and the shutdown of some major end users, the shortage of supply in the Asian MX market will be effectively alleviated

Supply shortages in the Asian market are alleviated

Market participants said that as the Asian heterogeneous MX market resumes production after the shutdown of Japanese MX devices for overhaul, the supply shortage in the heterogeneous MX market may be alleviated
.

In addition, major MX end users in Asia such as China Taiwan Chemical Fiber Corporation (FCFC) and South Korea's Lotte Chemical Corporation plan to shut down aromatics plants (producing PX, benzene and o-xylene) for maintenance, which will reduce the demand for heterogeneous MX
.
At the same time, downstream PX will be affected by the start of the second phase of China's Zhejiang Petrochemical.

Market participants said in May this year that such a large-scale increase in PX production capacity may put pressure on the PX market and affect the price and production profitability of heterogeneous MX
.
A Northeast Asian PX manufacturer is concerned about the increase in PX supply, which may lead to a decline in the operating rate of its PX plants, thereby reducing MX demand

The oversupply situation in the European market will disappear

The European MX market has focused its attention on the PX market in the second half of the year.
It is hoped that the resumption of production of downstream PTA devices after overhaul will bring new PX demand, thereby stimulating the growth of MX demand
.

The growth of demand in the European MX market in the second half of the year will depend on the increase in the operating rate of PX devices and the increase in driving activities.
The increase in driving activities may stimulate the demand for MX as a gasoline blending component
.
This year, due to the unplanned shutdown of the PX plant, the demand for MX as a chemical raw material has been suppressed, and the competitiveness of MX as a gasoline blending component is far less than reformed gasoline or methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) as a gasoline blending component Points

The European MX market is also expected to see an increase in demand for MX as a gasoline blending component in the second half of the year, especially during the summer driving season, as European vaccination continues
.

Ample supply in the U.
S.
market

　　In the second half of this year, the US Gulf Coast MX supply will tend to be abundant, although the winter storm in Texas in mid-February and the subsequent large-scale power outage resulted in planned shutdowns for maintenance and the shutdown of reformers, limiting production
.

　　The operating rate of U.
S.
refineries dropped sharply during the winter storm in February this year, but it rose to 86.
5% in May, slightly lower than the level before the COVID-19 pandemic
.
According to the forecast of S&P Global Platts, by midsummer, the operating rate of US refineries may be close to 95%

　　At the same time, MX demand from downstream PX producers will depend to a certain extent on the restoration of the supply of acetic acid in the United States
.
Previously, the supply of acetic acid in the United States was reduced due to winter storms in Texas

　　The continuous increase of global PX production capacity has put pressure on PX prices and production profits.