An initial Northwest European paraxylene contract price for April has settled at Eur925/mt FD NWE ($1,277.62/mt), market sources said Tuesday.
The initial April settlement represents an increase of Eur25/mt from March, with the March settlement being at Eur900/mt.
The level of the initial settlement was surprising given the depressed situation on the spot PX market, a source said.
"I was expecting a rollover at least," the source said.
Sources previously mentioned that the settlement of the PX contract in Europe was complicated by the absence of the Asian PX contract, with parties in that region failing to settle at the end of March.
The spot European PX market was assessed at $1,110/mt FOB ARA Monday, flat for the third consecutive day.
The downward pressure on the European PX market was caused by lack of demand outlets in ARA and weak arbitrage economics to other regions, sources said.
The weakness of spot PX prices relative to naphtha is deterring spot production, sources said.
The spread between the spot PX FOB ARA and naphtha CIF NWE cargoes was at $180.75/mt Monday, the lowest level seen since October 26, 2009, Platts data shows.
According to a source, the spread needs to be at least $300/mt for spot production of PX to become attractive for the producers.
