Fall in crude prices hits polymer products too

The cooling off in crude prices over the last three weeks has led to a drop in global polymer product prices also.

Key inputs for the polymer industry "� such as naphtha "� are currently selling at $480-485 a tonne levels in overseas markets compared with the $570 a tonne range at the end of August.

As a result, global prices of polymer products such as polypropylene have eased to $1,350 a tonne levels against $1,420 a tonne at the end of the last month.

Also, polyethylene prices are at $1,340 a tonne levels at present vis-a-vis $1,420 a tonne a month earlier.

Analysts said given high prices, demand for polymer products from user industries was sluggish at the end of August, but that is expected to change now. Reliance Industries officials were not available for comments on the company's pricing strategy in the changed scenario.

In the June quarter, the company produced 4,69,000 tonne polymer products.

Polymer products are experiencing the downturn despite the fact that several ethylene cracker facilities in East Asia have been shut for some time because of maintenance.