South Korea Takes Emergency Measures to Curb Hoarding of Seven Key Petrochemical Feedstocks as Supply Chain Risks Escalate to National Security Level

The South Korean government announced that from April 15 to June 30, it will implement anti-hoarding measures for seven key petrochemical raw materials, including ethylene, propylene, butadiene, benzene, toluene, and xylene. The inventory of relevant enterprises shall not exceed 180% of the level in the same period last year. The introduction of this emergency control measure marks that the impact of the Middle East geopolitical conflict on the global chemical supply chain has escalated from price fluctuations to the stability of the supply chain.

An investor asked on the interactive platform toPritiMay I ask whether the recent surge in petrochemical product prices and supply chain disruptions will significantly increase the company's raw material costs, and what measures the company has taken in response? Regarding the above question, Translate the above content into English and output the translation result directly, without any explanation.PritiDear investor, thank you for your attention. Affected by the international situation, crude oil prices have risen significantly, and the prices of upstream bulk petrochemical products have also increased rapidly, which will lead to higher costs for the company's modified materials business. Currently, the supply of raw materials is stable. In response to the pressure caused by the rising raw material prices, the company will continue to optimize its supply chain management, strengthen strategic cooperation with core suppliers, and actively address the impact of cost fluctuations through flexible adjustment of procurement strategies and optimization of product structures. At the same time, the company will actively communicate with downstream customers to jointly face the cost pressure caused by the rise in raw material prices, ensuring the security of the industrial supply chain. The company will also accelerate the development of new application areas and optimize its product structure to cope with the pressure brought by rising raw material prices. Thank you for your attention to the company. Thank you!

Oriental FortuneOn April 15, the company stated on the investor interaction platform that it currently possesses an EVA production capacity of 900,000 tons per year and a POE production capacity of 100,000 tons per year. Both its production scale and product quality rank among the industry’s leaders, enabling it to provide downstream photovoltaic customers with “one-stop” services. It is one of the very few leading domestic enterprises possessing independent R&D capabilities and large-scale production facilities for both core raw materials used in photovoltaic encapsulant films. Furthermore, the company has achieved comprehensive vertical integration across its upstream and downstream industrial chain: supporting production facilities for key raw materials—such as ethylene, vinyl acetate, and high-carbon alpha-olefins—required for EVA and POE manufacturing have all been established, allowing for self-sufficient raw material supply. In recent years, the company’s EVA products have received the “Innovative Chemical New Material” award and the “Second Prize for Scientific and Technological Progress” from the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation. Applications in downstream sectors are linked to the commercialization progress of various downstream photovoltaic enterprises.

WTI crude oil plunged 4.00% intraday, currently trading at $88.37 per barrel. Markets are reacting to former President Trump’s earlier statement that “the war between the U.S. and Iran is over.”

Exciting news has emerged from the site of China Chemical’s Western New Materials Company’s 20,000-ton-per-year ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) project: the facility has successfully commenced feedstock trial operation, marking the large-scale industrial application of China Chemical’s independently developed, proprietary batch-type slurry polymerization process in autoclaves, thus injecting strong impetus into China’s high-end new materials industry.