The Asian acrylic staple fibre markets were bearish this week as demand was hard to improve given the expectations of supply expanding. In China, acrylic spinning mills found difficult to ramp up operations due to power restrictions and lack of labors. As the expected weakness and the sharp downward settlement, spot prices too declined. Upstream acrylonitrile prices too were narrowly ranging bound but could not provide a lasting support. Coming weeks, sentiment is however, expected to remain stable.

Govt extends anti-dumping duty on Belarus, Japan acrylic fibre [ 01 Sep, 2010]

The government has decided to continue the imposition of anti-dumping duty on acrylic fibre from Belarus and Japan for five more years to protect the domestic industry from cheap imports.

The restrictive duty on acrylic fibre, a type of synthetic fibre used in apparel and home furnishing, will be up to USD 2,880 per metric tonne and will impact shipments from a total of seven enterprises based in Belarus and Japan.

"The anti-dumping duty imposed... shall be effective for a period of five years (unless revoked, superseded or amended earlier)...," a Department of Revenue notification said. The government had initially imposed anti-dumping duty on the material in 2004 for five years.

The Ministry of Commerce had recommended continuation of the anti-dumping duty on imports of acrylic fibre. A provisional anti-dumping duty has been in place since December last year.

Acrylic fibres are synthetic fibres made from a polymer used in apparel, home furnishing and industrial use. The principle of anti-dumping duty, a WTO-compatible tool, is to prevent dumping of cheap goods to ensure fair trading practices and create a level playing field for domestic producers vis-a-vis foreign producers and exporters.

Source: PTI

Acrylic Chain: Fall in acrylonitrile and ASF prices [ 02 Aug, 2010]

Propylene prices rebounded significantly in Asian markets as activities concentrated on China and supplies situation in Korea. The Asian benchmark number saw the highest weekly gains in recent past and August deals heard done higher than the spot. Steady crude oil and rising naphtha prices attracted buyers.

Despite the feedstock support, acrylonitrile prices dropped and were expected to fall further in August due to weak buying interest. Buyers adopted wait-and-see stance, waiting for more specific price trend in backwardation market and expecting supplies to increase in August. The drop in acrylonitrile prices eased the cost pressure on acrylic fibre market significantly. Demand to was hard to improve as buying interests was poor for spot materials depressing prices further.

Source: YnFx.com