Polymer prices – slow start to the year, minor polyolefin and PVC price declines in the second week of January

20.1.2026

2026 has begun, but most market participants were still on vacation last week. Thus, no transactions took place, only in a few cases deliveries were made for polymers ordered in the second half of 2025.

However, olefin monomer prices were already announced on Thursday of last week. The contract price of ethylene (C2) decreased by 25 euros and propylene (C3) by 30 euros. This is roughly half of what the NAPHTHA price increase would have justified. This suggests that European polymer producers are not interested in a significant monomer price drop at the beginning of the year.

Polyolefin producers are trying to maintain the price level from the end of December, and in most cases they will probably implement a rollover. With a larger monomer price reduction of 60-70 euros, this would no longer be possible. As oil prices have barely changed, it is likely that the decline in NAPHTHA prices is only temporary, mostly due to the year-end drop in demand. The smaller than justified monomer price decrease is also fortunate due to the likely January feedstock price correction.

For styrene monomer, we expect a smaller price increase of €20-40, supported by a €30/t increase in the contract price of benzene in January.

Production will begin in most countries in the coming week. The only exceptions are the Serb-populated parts of Serbia, Macedonia and Bosnia, where Christmas celebrations will take place in the coming week. There are also exceptions to this rule in countries such as Poland, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia, where Epiphany is also a public holiday.

Polymer demand is expected to be weak until the first orders arrive. However, it is not ruled out that demand will suddenly increase, a similar phenomenon will occur as in early 2025, when buyers of plastic finished products and packaging materials tried to replenish their stocks at the beginning of the year. This has led to strong demand. If demand increases in January this year, the fundamentally tight supply of polyolefins will become visible. This could also mean a price increase in mid-January for some polyethylenes after the roll-over in early January. Especially because there is still a shortage of some Central European grades, the supply of North American LLDPE grades is also limited, with new shipments expected to arrive in February. In addition, some Western European manufacturers are also struggling with production problems. In the case of polypropylenes, limited supply is expected only for BOPP and certain extruded PPC grades in the first half of January. However, in the case of polypropylene, tight supply does not necessarily mean price increases.

Author: MyCEPPI