The closure of the Strait of Hormuz — a critical route for transporting oil, gas, and petrochemicals — has significantly increased freight expenses and triggered a series of force majeure declarations from producers in Asia, Europe, and major global trading companies.
Rising feedstock costs have consequently pushed polymer prices sharply higher across the PP, PVC, PE, PS, and PET markets.
While the sudden increases have caused concern among buyers and sparked demand for prompt cargoes, converters are struggling to pass these rapid cost increases on to finished product prices at the same speed.
With the Eid holiday approaching, buyers are expected to remain cautious. However, strong global price increases and ongoing geopolitical uncertainty are likely to keep prices moving upward. Similar price surges are also being reported across China, Southeast Asia, Europe, and India due to supply chain disruptions and energy shortages.
PP: Saudi logistics disruptions push import prices sharply higher
In the week following the outbreak of the conflict between the US, Israel, and Iran, the Turkish market received almost no new import offers. Sellers temporarily suspended pricing as oil prices and freight rates rose rapidly.
Saudi Arabia — Turkey’s main PP supplier — sits at the center of the conflict, placing shipments at serious risk. At the same time, the near standstill in traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has raised security concerns and increased freight costs significantly.
Logistical challenges have also emerged within Saudi Arabia itself. Transporting cargo from production facilities to the port of Jeddah has become difficult due to a shortage of trucks, creating congestion across the region.
Some shipments originally scheduled to depart from Gulf ports such as Dammam and Jebel Ali have been redirected to Oman’s Sohar and Salalah ports or to Jeddah on the Red Sea, extending delivery times and increasing overall shipping expenses. Suppliers say inland transport alone can add roughly $100/ton to logistics costs. Meanwhile, Salalah port has suspended operations after security incidents.
A regional producer commented that price increases of around $200–250/ton have been implemented to reflect these surcharges. The source added that several major Saudi ports, including Yanbu, Rabigh, and King Abdullah, are located in affected areas, creating further uncertainty for shipments.
During the week, new homo PP import offers gradually emerged with increases ranging from $200 to $500 per ton compared to February levels, pushing PPH prices above the $1400/ton CIF Turkey mark. However, many of these offers were only valid for a short period.
The shortage of imported material has caused almost daily price increases in the domestic market. Local producer Petkim has kept sales controlled due to strong demand for prompt cargoes, while raffia prices surpassed $1900/ton including VAT by midweek.
PE: Import availability tightens amid worsening supply conditions
The PE market has also been heavily affected by the current situation. After a full week with no import offers, a major Saudi supplier announced March offers for LLDPE C4 film and HDPE film with increases of $250–280/ton compared to February.
Meanwhile, no offers were heard from Qatar due to force majeure.
Traders dealing in US-origin material either withdrew their offers from the market or applied significant price increases, pushing LLDPE and HDPE film prices above the $1200/ton CIF Turkey level.
Buyers noted that cargoes departing from the Middle East face uncertain delivery schedules, with suppliers unable to provide clear arrival dates for new shipments. Some converters are actively searching for material to secure supply, while others prefer to wait until after the holiday before making new purchases.
Many buyers also noted that passing such rapid and large increases on to finished product prices remains extremely challenging.
PVC: Prices rise sharply as European suppliers remain absent
PVC prices have also climbed sharply as geopolitical tensions rapidly increase production and logistics costs. The main topic across the market has been the wave of force majeure declarations and warning letters issued by producers and traders following feedstock disruptions in Asia and Europe after the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Taiwan’s Formosa Plastics has joined the list of producers declaring force majeure amid the latest developments.
Brent crude oil futures briefly surged to $120/bbl earlier in the week before retreating after certain remarks from Donald Trump, though prices remained volatile and stayed above $100/bbl at the time of writing.
In the import market, dutiable PVC K67 prices moved above $900/ton CIF Turkey. US K67 offers were reported within a wide range of $850–1000/ton, although the lower end quickly disappeared while higher offers attracted limited buying interest despite deferred payment options.
A trader reported selling US-origin material at $925/ton, noting that the market has become highly speculative due to unstable freight costs and tightening supply.
Meanwhile, rising Chinese export prices and war-related surcharges across shipping routes prevented clear price indications for Chinese PVC cargoes this week.
European offers had still not emerged at the time of writing. Force majeure announcements from INEOS Inovyn and QatarEnergy’s QEM, along with operational issues reported by several South Korean suppliers, have further increased market uncertainty.
Limited volumes from Egypt and South Korea available through traders pushed duty-free PVC prices higher, with the upper end exceeding $1000/ton CIF Turkey.
Domestic PVC prices rose by around $200/ton during the week as distributors applied steep increases for prompt cargoes due to high replenishment costs and limited stocks at Petkim. The local producer has issued multiple price increases since early March to reflect rising costs for both VCM and PVC.
PET: Feedstock rally lifts prices to a 3.5-year high
Turkey’s PET market also surged as the Middle East conflict disrupted global energy flows, shipping routes, and upstream supply chains.
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has pushed freight costs higher and reduced feedstock availability for Asian producers. Strong gains in upstream feedstocks — especially paraxylene — created additional cost pressure across the polyester chain.
Volatility in oil, freight, and raw material markets has reduced pricing visibility, causing suppliers to remain cautious while buyers largely avoided new purchases.
Many Asian suppliers suspended offers due to production and logistical disruptions. Supply concerns increased further after Japan’s ENEOS declared force majeure on paraxylene shipments due to feedstock supply issues linked to the Middle East.
Additional disruptions across the PET chain increased global supply concerns. Yisheng Petrochemical declared force majeure on shipments from its Yangpu and Dalian plants, while China Resources also declared force majeure. Indorama announced a force majeure in Europe linked to Middle East disruptions, and JBF Global Europe introduced a March PET surcharge due to sharply rising costs.
Local PET prices climbed significantly and reached their highest level in about three and a half years according to ChemOrbis data. Early-week spot discussions started near $1350/ton before later producer indications rose to $1380–1400/ton.
One domestic producer even tested $1480/ton early in the week before adjusting the level back to $1380/ton. Buyers continue to rely on existing stocks while waiting for clearer market direction.
PS: Rising styrene costs trigger major domestic increases
Turkey’s PS market also experienced sharp price increases as global feedstock supply concerns intensified. Domestic producers reported month-on-month increases of around $250/ton.
GPPS prices approached the $1600/ton level while HIPS prices moved close to $1700/ton FCA Adana, excluding VAT.
Strong increases in spot styrene prices across Europe and Asia played a major role in the latest pricing moves. Sources from domestic producers said they are revising list prices almost daily due to instability in upstream markets and widespread logistical challenges.
Upstream styrene prices in Europe moved above $1400/ton while Asian prices approached $1200/ton at the time of writing.
Market participants will closely monitor the duration of the Middle East conflict in the coming days, while converters remain concerned about their ability to transfer these sharp resin price increases to finished product prices.
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