In the early market close, the main domestic futures contracts saw more gains than losses. Polysilicon rose nearly 6%, palladium and**** (coke) were up over 5%, Shanghai silver increased over 4%, platinum and lithium carbonate rose nearly 4%, coking coal gained over 3%, and Shanghai tin was up nearly 3%. On the downside, SC crude oil fell nearly 5%, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and low-sulfur fuel oil (LU) dropped nearly 4%, fuel oil was down over 3%, and propylene, European shipping, monthly average polypropylene, and polypropylene all fell over 1%.

According to foreign media reports,Dow has announced that its LCH3 steam cracking unit in Terneuzen, the Netherlands, has resumed operations. The cracker had previously delayed its planned maintenance, originally scheduled for June 2025, due to weak market conditions, and was subsequently shut down, remaining out of operation until now.In January 2025, Dow Chemical stated that it would suspend operations at the plant until market conditions improve. The cracker has a nameplate capacity of 680,000 metric tons of ethylene per year and 286,000 metric tons of propylene per year, and it was commissioned in 2000.

In May 2026, the cost support of crude oil for PE weakened. Domestic production increased while imports continued to decrease, leading to a slight overall increase in supply. The downstream sector is in a traditional demand off-season, with low enthusiasm for raw material procurement, which is bearish for the spot market. In June, cost support is expected to continue weakening, with an anticipated increase in domestic supply, and in the off-season for demand, the price focus of the PE market may continue to decline.

This week, the domestic ABS petrochemical inventory stands at 239,400 tons, a week-on-week decrease of 43,200 tons, and a year-on-year increase of 33,000 tons. Under recent bulk discount policies by individual enterprises, inventory reduction has been more significant; coupled with production cuts at some units and increased buying activity driven by the raw material side during the week, manufacturers have accelerated their shipment pace, resulting in a substantial decline in the total ABS petrochemical inventory this week.

Recently, the 300,000 t/y vinyl acetate unit (hereinafter referred to as the VAC unit) of Guangxi Huayi Energy & Chemical’s methanol-to-olefins and downstream deep-processing integration project successfully produced on-spec products, achieving a successful first startup. This has laid a solid foundation for opening up the project’s upstream and downstream production links, as well as for the coordinated operation and full capacity release of subsequent supporting units such as EVA, marking a solid step forward in the company’s industrial chain extension and industrial upgrading.

  On June 9th, CICC Wealth Futures released a report indicating that the geopolitical fluctuations in crude oil have led to international crude oil prices leading the chemical sector, stimulating a halt and rebound in the styrene market as Israel and Gaza resumed mutual bombings, putting the fragile ceasefire at risk. However, on the other hand, the supply-demand balance of styrene itself shows a clear trend of tightness in the near term and looseness in the long term. In the short term, maintenance at Zhenhai Linde and Shenghong Petrochemical has caused the domestic styrene operating rate to remain at a yearly low of 64.1%. Yet, market attention has shifted to the resumption and increase in production expected in mid to late June, with a relatively clear expectation of loose supply in the long run. Downstream off-season negative factors continue to manifest, with operating rates for EPS, PS, and ABS at 44%, 49%, and 58.7% respectively; corporate orders are weak, finished product inventories remain high, and terminal demand shows no marginal improvement. Additionally, the narrowing styrene supply gap in Asia has significantly reduced domestic export orders, with export contract volumes halving from late May to June. In summary, the main contradiction in the styrene market will revolve around the interplay between raw material cost support and deteriorating fundamental expectations, limiting the rebound potential and making a smooth one-sided rally unlikely.

Recently, the Silleno polyethylene project in Atyrau, Kazakhstan, has successfully commenced construction. The project has a total investment of 7.7 billion USD, with a designed annual production capacity of 1.25 million tons of polyethylene, and is planned to be completed and put into operation by 2029. Once operational, the project will meet 90% of Kazakhstan's domestic polyethylene market demand, with products also being exported to markets in Europe, China, and other regions. This project is a landmark for the deepening pragmatic cooperation among China, Russia, and Kazakhstan in the high value-added petrochemical industry. The implementation and construction of this project further consolidates Second Chemical Engineering Construction Corporation’s overseas engineering achievements and adds another outstanding result to its overseas market layout.

Reported on June 8: PetroChina South China lowered its ABS prices by RMB 200/ton. Jieyang 0215A is listed at RMB 9,700/ton, 0215H at RMB 9,700/ton, 0215E at RMB 9,700/ton, HF681 at RMB 10,000/ton, and 2437 at RMB 9,300/ton. PetroChina’s Daqing Petrochemical ABS unit has a capacity of 300,000 tons/year, while the (Jilin Petrochemical) Jieyang ABS unit has a capacity of 600,000 tons/year.

Reported on June 8: Liaoning Jinfab’s ABS unit has a production capacity of 600,000 tons/year. Prices were lowered this week. The current offer for grade KF730 is RMB 12,300/ton delivered to the East China market and RMB 12,300/ton delivered to the South China market. Actual transactions are negotiable.

Recently, Tianjin Nangang Ethylene’s new polypropylene grade product, r-TPO (reactor thermoplastic polyolefin) PPB-MP28, was exported to South Korea for the first time, successfully entering the local high-end automotive raw materials market. Featuring excellent properties such as high impact resistance and low odor, the product is mainly used for modification processing and is applied in key components such as interior trims and bumpers for Korean-brand automobiles.

The Japan Petrochemical Industry Association reported in early May that the utilization rate of ethylene plants fell to 67.3% in April, the lowest level since comparable data began in 1996, down from the previous low of 68.8% set in March. The association indicated that this rate has decreased from 75.7% in February, during a time of escalating tensions in the Middle East, which effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz and disrupted the transportation of oil and petroleum products, including naphtha.

Recently, under the supervision of Dagang Customs under Tianjin Customs, a batch of ethylene weighing approximately 5,000 tonnes produced by Sinopec INEOS (Tianjin) Petrochemical Co., Ltd. successfully completed export customs clearance procedures and was shipped to South Korea aboard the vessel “Maple Coral.” This marks the successful completion of the first ethylene export by sea through Tianjin Port.

Recently, good news came from the Phase II Stage I project of Shaanxi Coal Group Yulin Chemical Co., Ltd. (“Yulin Chemical”): the main structures of the No. 1 and No. 2 polypropylene extrusion pelletizing buildings were successfully topped out. The successful completion of this key milestone marks the full transition of polypropylene unit construction into the critical sprint phase of equipment installation, laying a solid foundation for subsequent internal equipment installation, pipeline laying, and system commissioning.

Securities Daily website, May 28: When answering questions from researchers, Shuangxin Materials stated that the company’s existing PVB resin production capacity is 32,000 tons per year.

On May 25, an investor askedCangzhou MingzhuI would like to ask about the Company’s order situation against the backdrop of the national “Six Networks” initiative: 1. Which specific areas of the “Six Networks” do the Company’s PE pipelines, lithium battery separators, and BOPA films correspond to, respectively? What is the current scale of orders and framework agreements on hand for each business segment, and how have they grown year-on-year? 2. Since the state-owned capital became the controlling shareholder, has this brought any new orders, new customers, or major cooperation opportunities related to “Six Networks” projects? 3. What is the situation this year regarding newly added orders and awarded projects for PE pipelines in municipal pipeline network and water conservancy projects, and for BOPA films in the logistics packaging sector? Regarding this,Cangzhou MingzhuOn May 28, in response on the investor interaction platform, it was stated that PE pipeline products are one of the company's main products, primarily used in the construction of underground networks such as gas and water supply. The introduction of this policy will have a positive impact on the company's pipeline product business. Currently, the production and sales of various products are operating normally. The company will actively explore domestic and international markets based on the sales targets set at the beginning of the year, fully strive to stabilize operations and increase efficiency, while closely monitoring industry policy trends and actively expanding market share.

On May 27, Pujie Energy Chemical Co-Creation New Materials Company's Polyolefin Elastomer (POR) industrial demonstration project was launched, marking the start of construction for the world's first industrialized POR project. The commencement of this POR project is not only an important practice of Pujie Energy Chemical's deep implementation of the four business philosophies but also a strategic move to extend the coal chemical industry chain, enhance product added value, and build a high-end new materials industry cluster. This project relies on fully independently developed core process technology, successfully breaking the long-term foreign technological monopoly, overcoming the industry's "bottleneck" technical challenges, filling the domestic industrialization gap in related fields, and promoting material upgrades and cost optimization in downstream industries.

As of May 27, 2026, the sample inventory of Chinese polyethylene producers stood at 497,900 tonnes, down 51,300 tonnes from the previous period, a decrease of 9.34% month on month, with the inventory trend continuing to decline. The main reason was the marginal weakening of supply and demand, which turned producers’ sentiment bearish and prompted them to cut prices to reduce inventories. In addition, as the month-end approached, downstream factories and traders accelerated the execution of their monthly planned volumes, enabling inventories to be smoothly transferred downstream. Downstream factories replenished stocks on dips, leading to declines in both producers’ inventories and social sample warehouse inventories.

Jiangsu Suopu announced plans to issue A-shares to no more than 35 specific investors, raising a total amount of no more than 1.6 billion yuan. The net proceeds after deducting issuance expenses will be used for the Vinyl Acetate and EVA Integrated Project (Phase I) and the 200,000 tons/year Dimethyl Carbonate Project. The number of shares to be issued will not exceed 350 million shares, with an issuance price not lower than 80% of the average stock price of the company over the 20 trading days prior to the pricing benchmark date and not lower than the net asset value per share. This issuance is subject to approval by the company’s shareholders’ meeting, review and approval by the Shanghai Stock Exchange, and registration consent by the China Securities Regulatory Commission.

Recently, the environmental impact assessment document for the 250,000 t/y C4-to-1-butene project of Inner Mongolia Baofeng Coal-Based New Materials Co., Ltd. has been made public. The project will construct a 250,000 t/y 1-butene unit, adopting a domestically developed integrated process of “selective hydrogenation + super pre-fractionation + 2-butene isomerization + etherification de-isobutene + precision rectification.” The plant will produce 140,000 t/y of polymer-grade 1-butene, 18,300 t/y of MTBE (methyl tert-butyl ether), and 89,700 t/y of heavy C4. The main construction contents include a feedstock system, hydrogenation reaction unit, super pre-fractionation unit, 2-butene isomerization unit, etherification de-isobutene unit, and precision rectification unit. Public utilities will rely on the existing facilities within the plant, and supporting environmental protection facilities will be constructed.

  On May 27, PVC production enterprises experienced relatively concentrated maintenance, while domestic demand orders remained sluggish. India's tariff policies combined with the rainy season have cooled down foreign trade exports. The supply and demand pattern shows weakness on both sides. With the end of the month approaching, policy support expectations are weak, but cost-based bottom support remains firm. The spot market is expected to fluctuate mainly within a range.