Once suffered nearly $1 billion in losses! Celanese has repeatedly shut down facilities—Is its engineering plastics footprint accelerating its shift eastward?

Introduction Recently, Celanese released its Q2 2026 financial results. Against a backdrop of rising global volumes and prices, its Engineering Materials business achieved profitability after losses. From a production capacity perspective, this performance turnaround coincides with major adjustments to the company’s global manufacturing footprint. Previously, Celanese completed the shutdown of its engineering plastics compounding facility in Ulsan, South Korea, relocating that capacity to Nanjing and Shenzhen in China, and Silvassa in India. Source: Celanese The Ulsan plant served as a key engineering plastics compounding hub for Celanese across the Asia-Pacific region. Its product portfolio included four categories of engineering plastics—Rynite PET, PBT, PA, and HTN high-temperature nylon—used in automotive, electronics & electrical, and consumer goods applications. Following the shutdown, part of its capacity was redistributed to Celanese’s Nanjing and Shenzhen plants in China, and its Silvassa plant in India. All three receiving sites feature advanced compounding capabilities and are strategically located near core consumption markets for automotive, electronics, and home appliances in China and India. Celanese has committed to fulfilling all existing orders without interruption, executing a phased and smooth transition with zero supply gaps, and supporting customers with Rynite material substitution technical assistance through its local technical centers. Below, we delve deeper into Celanese’s engineering plastics business. Q2 Financial Results: $2.8 billion in revenue; Engineering Materials business turns profitable Financial data clearly reflects the initial success of Celanese’s strategic realignment. In Q2 2026, Celanese reported net sales of $2.8 billion—a 18% sequential increase—with volume up 4% and pricing up 14%. Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) reached $2.45—the highest level in three years. Consolidated operating profit stood at $276 million; adjusted EBIT totaled $470 million; and operating EBITDA amounted to $649 million—corresponding to margins of 10%, 17%, and 24%, respectively. Net sales for the Engineering Materials business totaled $1.45 billion, up 9% sequentially, with operating profit of $156 million and adjusted EBIT of $234 million. Acetyl chain products business recorded net sales of $1.33 billion, up 28% sequentially, with operating profit of $237 million. Both core segments posted strong, simultaneous improvements—driving overall corporate profitability recovery. Both segments saw gains in both volume and price, with medical and electronics end-markets contributing sustained growth momentum. Regarding future market trends, Celanese provided clear forward guidance: it expects adjusted EPS for Q3 to range between $1.35 and $1.75, and maintains its full-year outlook of approximately $6.00 in adjusted EPS and free cash flow of $700–800 million. Engineering Materials Business Once Incurred Nearly $1 Billion in Losses In Q3 2025, Celanese’s Engineering Materials business posted an operating loss of $1.327 billion, with a margin of -96%. The primary cause of the loss was non-cash asset impairments triggered by the company’s annual goodwill and intangible assets impairment test—totaling approximately $1.5 billion, including roughly $1.1 billion in goodwill impairments related mainly to trademarks and goodwill associated with the Zytel nylon product line. As a result, the Engineering Materials business incurred a full-year 2025 operating loss of $958 million. The company reported a full-year net loss of $1.165 billion, with total special items amounting to $1.639 billion—of which $1.572 billion impacted the Engineering Materials business. This represents Celanese’s largest-ever asset impairment since its acquisition of DuPont’s M&M business.

Dow Chemical, BASF, and Celanese jointly announce May price hikes! PE surges 100%; 'plastic inflation' hits across the board.

Giant Players Take Turns: Plastics industry giants continue raising prices in May—with maximum increases doubling Under mounting pressure from supply chain disruptions, global chemical majors began implementing price hikes starting in March. By April and May, the frequency and magnitude of these increases further escalated. BASF, Dow Chemical, Celanese, Tosoh, and Covestro have all issued May price adjustment notices covering polyethylene (PE), MDI, engineering plastics, plastic additives, and other categories. Dow Chemical: Polyethylene cumulative increase reaches ~100% over two months On April 25, U.S. chemical giant Dow Chemical stated that the Middle East conflict has disrupted approximately 50% of global ethylene and polyethylene capacity, triggering severe supply-demand imbalances and sharp price spikes. Dow had already announced a PE price hike in April—raising prices by $0.30 per pound (approximately 60%)—and plans another $0.20-per-pound increase in May, bringing the cumulative rise to about 100%. Dow CEO Jim Fitterling acknowledged that this round of price hikes is “unprecedented in over a decade.” BASF: Additives up by as much as 25% On April 27, BASF announced further price increases for its global portfolio of antioxidants, processing stabilizers, and light stabilizers used in plastic applications—up to a maximum of 25%. BASF explicitly attributed this adjustment to sharply rising raw material costs, energy expenses, and logistics costs caused by the Middle East military conflict. Celanese: PA6/PA66 prices up by over USD 1,000 per metric ton Effective May 1, with the strongest hikes in Asia: Celanese announced that, due to recent market developments and global supply chain disruptions, it will raise prices for multiple engineering plastics—including PA6/PA66, PET, and TPV—effective May 1, 2026. Specifically, PA6/PA66 prices in Asia will increase by USD 0.30–0.60 per kilogram; PET prices in Asia will rise by USD 0.20–0.50 per kilogram; and TPV prices in Asia will increase by USD 1.50 per kilogram. This marks Celanese’s third round of price hikes this year. Tosoh & Covestro: MDI up by USD 500–600 per metric ton On April 23, Japanese chemical firm Tosoh announced that, effective May 1, it would raise prices for its MDI product series by more than JPY 80 per kilogram (approximately RMB 3,428 per metric ton). The company explained that deteriorating Middle East conditions have led to unstable oil-producing country supplies, while persistent yen depreciation has pushed raw material costs beyond sustainable levels. Should raw material and energy costs continue to fluctuate significantly, Tosoh warned it may implement further price adjustments. Meanwhile, Covestro also adjusted MDI prices upward by USD 600 per metric ton (approximately RMB 4,097 per metric ton). From polyethylene to MDI, from engineering plastics to plastic additives, May 1 has become a pivotal date in this wave of plastic price hikes. Price adjustments by major chemical companies have created a ‘price resonance’ effect—the scale and breadth of increases setting new industry records in recent years, imposing substantial cost pressures on downstream manufacturers. Transmission & Spillover: Home appliances, automobiles, and daily necessities already feel the pinch of 'plastic inflation' As a foundational industrial material, plastics enjoy extremely broad application—from appliance housings and automobile bumpers to electronics packaging, bottled water containers, plastic bags, and even medical gloves and IV sets. Plastic price hikes reverberate across virtually every industrial chain.

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