Ethylene buyers and sellers reached a two-month settlement, bringing ethylene contract prices to 52.5 cents per pound (cpp) for February deliveries--a 9.5 cpp increase. January ethylene contract prices moved up 6.0 cpp and February contracts went up 3.5 cpp.

Propylene contracts began to settle up 5.0 cpp for March deliveries, bringing proyplene contract prices to 68.5 cpp. 

Townsend publishes market commentary on feedstocks for PE, PET, PP, PS, and PVC in its Plastic Market  Monthly reports.

Dow Chemical Company already had a 5.0 cents per pound increase announced to take effect March 1, 2010 on all of its polypropylene resin grades.  Just today, they announced an additional 2.0 cent per pound increase, on PP resins, to also take effect on March 1, 2010.  This is a retroactive increase which is highly unusual for the industry.  It brings the total March price increases to 7.0 cents per pound, for polypropylene. 

Townsend will survey buyers at the end of March to understand how the market responds to the 7-cent PP increase.

Beginning this month, more than 3,000 European Polyethylene processors will have the opportunity to provide extensive feedback to their resin suppliers regarding product and service offerings via the global market research firm, Townsend Solutions.  

US ethylene prices did not settle for January 2010 contract.  Negotiations will resume at the end of February to reach a two-month settlement.  The last settled US ethylene contract price was 43.0 cents per pound for December 2009.

For ethylene and polyethylene price benchmarks, see Townsend's Plastic Market Monthly reports.

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as noted in Plastics News interview with Townsend's Director PP Consulting, Joe Congdon

Did you know Townsend's database contains in-depth profiles of over 45000 plastic processing plants around the world?  Get a sample of Townsend's profiles to view contacts, resin consumed, suppliers, process and end-use markets by manufacturing location.  

Responses from 490 processors indicate activity is strong in the survey conducted by Townsend Solutions & Plastics Technology.

LBI's polyethylene and polypropylene businesses profiled

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