Chemical equity prices, as measured by the S&P index for chemical companies, fell by 10.4% in January, according to the latest Weekly Chemistry and Economic Report from the American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com). The benchmark S&P 500 index fell 5.1% in January.
Citing details from the most recent ISM (Institute for Supply Management) manufacturing report, ACC says the chemical industry was “one of the manufacturing industries reporting contraction during January, with gains in export and other new orders offsetting contracting production, employment, order backlogs, and imports.” The ACC report also pointed out that “inventories contracted, but customer inventories were deemed too high,” and supplier deliveries were slow.
Meanwhile, the ACC released its Global Chemical Production Regional Index (Global CPRI) for December, and the data show “the fourth quarter ended on a good note, with the headline index rising 0.5% on a three-month-moving-average (3MMA) basis.” This follows a similar gain during November.
“During December, the [Global CPRI] chemical production index rose in North America, Western Europe, Central & Eastern Europe, Africa and the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, but was flat in Latin America,” the ACC report said. The Global CPRI was up 3.5% Y/Y on a 3MMA basis and stood at 109.6% of its average 2012 levels in October. For 2015 as a whole, production rose 3.0%, the ACC report added.