In February, the price of domestic polyester staple fiber decreased slightly. According to the price monitoring of the Business Agency, the average spot price of domestic polyester staple fiber was 7402 yuan/ton on February 28, down 3.27% from the price of 7652 at the beginning of the month, down 4.72% year on year. In the futures market, the staple fiber contract at the end of the month closed at 7212 (settlement price 7166), down 3.45% from the beginning of the month.
In February, the international crude oil price showed a narrow fluctuation trend, with a fall of 2.77% in the whole month. On February 28, the main contract of US WTI crude oil futures closed at US $76.83/barrel. The warm winter in the United States and Europe is the main reason for the decline of oil prices this month. In addition, with the strengthening of the US dollar, the decline of US stocks and the comments of hawkish Fed officials, the price of crude oil continued to be under pressure. This month, Russia announced that the production reduction decision was only for March, and the later production decision would depend on the situation. It is expected that Russia’s crude oil production will recover.
In February, the domestic PTA market showed a trend of first decline and then rise. As of February 28, the average market price in East China was 5597 yuan/ton, down 2.89% from the beginning of the month and 1.05% year on year. This month, PTA plant maintenance devices were restarted more frequently, and the supply side increased, and the industry started at more than 72%. At the beginning of the month, due to insufficient follow-up of terminal orders, the new PTA devices were put into production, and the price fell slightly. After that, PTA increased its maintenance due to low processing difference, and the downstream polyester was seasonally negative, the supply and demand pattern improved, and the price stopped falling and rebounded.
In February, the price of ethylene glycol fell first and then rose. According to the data of Business News Agency, the average price of domestic oil-based ethylene glycol on February 28 was 4308.33 yuan/ton, down 2.27% from the average market price of 4408.33 yuan/ton at the beginning of the month. In the second half of this month, the prices of upstream raw materials ethylene and naphtha were good, and the overall performance of coal prices was good. At present, the cost-side support was strong. However, the high inventory in the main port in the short term suppressed the amount of ethylene glycol.
In February, most of the cotton mills and weaving mills still digested the stock orders before the Spring Festival, and the domestic sales orders only slightly increased. Foreign trade was affected by high inventory, and the new orders were still not released smoothly. The orders of textile enterprises did not show the explosive growth expected by the market, and the new orders were issued limited, which restricted the enthusiasm of some manufacturers in production. The overall situation is still weak compared with the same period last year. As of February 27, the comprehensive operating rate of weaving in Jiangsu and Zhejiang was more than 67%.
Analysts from the Business News Agency believe that the cost of staple fiber raw materials is still supported, and the downstream yarn mills and weaving mills are actively resuming work. With the arrival of the traditional consumption season, the demand for staple fiber may improve, and the market is expected to warm up, and the future market is cautiously optimistic. It is expected that the staple fiber price will oscillate with the cost in March. In the future, we will focus on the price trend of raw materials and the recovery of terminal orders.