This week, the mixed xylene market fluctuated downward, with a benchmark price of 6938.25 yuan/ton on April 13, 2026, falling to 6400.75 yuan/ton on April 20, a 7.75% decline during the cycle. The weakening of crude oil on the cost side has suppressed support, domestic refineries on the supply side are actively shipping, and downstream demand is weak. The market trading is light, and industry sentiment is bearish. The mixed xylene market is showing a unilateral weak operation.
Cost aspect: After significant fluctuations in international crude oil prices this week, the center of gravity has shifted downwards, and the cost support for mixed xylene continues to weaken. Crude oil fell sharply in the early stage of the week due to the easing of geopolitical situation and the increase in inventory. Although it rebounded briefly during the trading session, it failed to reverse the weak pattern and directly weakened the cost support of mixed xylene production. At the same time, the Asian mixed xylene market first rose and then fell. On April 15th, FOB South Korea closed up by $23/ton to $1094-1096/ton, CFR China closed at $1110/ton, and on April 16th FOB South Korea fell back to $1088-1090/ton and CFR China fell back to $1103/ton. The foreign market prices weakened from strong to weak, further dragging down domestic cost support. The price difference between pure benzene and mixed xylene remains loose, and the arbitrage window between PX and mixed xylene has opened, forming a certain diversion support for mixed xylene. However, the strength is limited, making it difficult to offset the negative transmission caused by the weakening of crude oil, and the overall performance on the cost side is bearish. As of March 13th and April 17th, the settlement price of the June contract for WTI crude oil futures in the United States was $82.59 per barrel. The settlement price of Brent crude oil futures for the June contract is $90.38 per barrel.
Supply side:
The supply of mixed xylene in the domestic market remains loose, with active shipments from main refineries and Shandong refineries, and sufficient market supply. Although the second quarter is the traditional maintenance season in the industry, and some companies have maintenance plans, there is currently no large-scale maintenance landing this week, and the overall production capacity of mixed xylene in China is fully released. Combined with the reasonable level of inventory maintained in East China ports, the market has abundant circulation of goods, and the supply side has significantly suppressed prices.
Demand side:
According to the Commodity Market Analysis System of Shengyi Society, the overall demand for mixed xylene downstream is weak, and the release of essential demand in various sectors is limited.
PX industry chain: The domestic PX market operates steadily, with stable core equipment and smooth shipments; The Asian PX external market fluctuated and fell. On April 10th, the FOB South Korean average price for Asian PX external market was about 1144 US dollars/ton, and the CFR China average price was about 1169 US dollars/ton. By April 16th, the FOB South Korean average price had fallen to 1213 US dollars/ton, and the CFR China average price had fallen to 1238 US dollars/ton. The overall external market price had slightly declined, and the profit and purchasing mentality of the PX industry chain were limited, dragging down the demand for mixed xylene chemical industry.
Coatings and solvent industry: During the week, the domestic coatings and solvent industry maintained a medium low level of production, with weak consumption in the end market and a continuous decline in the price of mixed xylene. Industry players showed a strong wait-and-see attitude, with procurement mainly focused on small orders for essential needs. The demand for mixed blending remained weak, making it difficult to effectively support the mixed xylene market.
Overall, downstream industries have a clear resistance to high priced mixed xylene. Even if prices are significantly reduced, the pace of replenishment remains slow, and the demand side continues to be weak.

Market forecast:
In the short term, the domestic mixed xylene market will still face multiple pressures and is likely to maintain a weak and volatile trend. The trend of crude oil on the cost side remains uncertain, and if it continues to weaken, it will further drag down the mixed xylene market; The loose supply pattern of domestic refineries and local refineries on the supply side is difficult to change in the short term, coupled with the slow pace of subsequent maintenance and landing, and market supply pressure still exists; The recovery of downstream industries on the demand side is slow, and the release of essential demand is limited. The follow-up situation of procurement will become a key variable in the market. It is expected that there will be no significant reversal in the mixed xylene market in the short term. In the future, special attention should be paid to fluctuations in crude oil prices, updates on equipment maintenance by domestic enterprises, and the pace of downstream inventory replenishment, in order to be alert to the risk of continued price decline.

According to the Commodity Market Analysis System of Shengyi Society, the PTA spot market in East China showed a slight upward trend this week (April 13-17), with an average market price of 6597 yuan/ton at the beginning of the week, an increase of 4.12% compared to the beginning of the week.
The supply side has become the core supporting factor in the market. In April, the industry ushered in a centralized maintenance season, with tens of millions of tons of production capacity from companies such as Yisheng, Hengli, and INEOS undergoing centralized maintenance. Large scale facilities of leading enterprises have been shut down for maintenance, and the industry load has decreased from 85% to around 70% currently. Combined with the fact that there will be no new PTA production capacity in China by 2026, the industry’s supply will continue to shrink, and social inventory will shift from accumulated to depleted, providing bottom support for prices.
The progress of the US Iran negotiations will gradually weaken the geopolitical premium, and the cost of crude oil and PX may fluctuate and fall at high levels. As of April 16th, the settlement price of the May WTI crude oil futures contract in the United States was $94.69 per barrel, and the settlement price of the June Brent crude oil futures contract was $99.39 per barrel.
The demand side is in the traditional off-season for textiles, with insufficient terminal foreign trade orders. The operating rate of weaving machines in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces is only 60-70%. Although the polyester sector maintains an 80% operating rate, the inventory of finished products has accumulated. Enterprises mainly purchase PTA for essential needs, and the transmission of high priced raw materials downstream is hindered, dragging down the market on the demand side.
Business analysts believe that in the short term, the domestic PTA supply is expected to maintain a contraction, and there will be little change in the downstream polyester end. Most of the purchases are for essential needs, and the degree of destocking of social inventory will expand. In addition, there are many uncertain factors in the Middle East situation, and the supply of raw materials is still tight, with cost support still present.

Market trend
In the past week (April 8-14), the PA6 market experienced a trend of first rising and then falling. The benchmark price of Shengyi reached its peak of 14600 yuan/ton for the year on April 13th (up 3.55% from the beginning of the month), but then quickly fell back. As of April 14th, it closed at 14133.33 yuan/ton, down 3.20% from the previous day, giving up most of the gains.
influencing factors
Cost aspect
In the first half of the week, the core raw material of PA6, caprolactam, maintained a tight pattern. On April 7th, Sinopec’s weekly closing price of caprolactam was significantly increased by 1120 yuan/ton to 14030 yuan/ton, an increase of about 8.7%, directly pushing up the production cost of PA6, and the market has a strong bullish sentiment. However, cost support loosened in the second half of the week. On April 13th, Sinopec announced that the latest weekly closing price of caprolactam had dropped to 13800 yuan/ton, a decrease of 230 yuan/ton from the previous period, directly weakening the cost support of PA6 and cooling down the market’s bullish expectations.
Supply and demand side
The supply side is showing a clear trend of looseness, resulting in significant price suppression. The overall supply remains loose. It is worth noting that multiple companies have clearly marked “actual order negotiation” in their quotations, and there is room for downward negotiation in the actual transaction price, reflecting the strong willingness of the supply side to ship and the lack of sustained upward movement in prices.
The overall demand side is weak. Although the downstream terminal textile and chemical fiber industry has resumed work, its acceptance of high priced raw materials is limited. Procurement is mainly based on “replenishment of essential needs and procurement as needed”, and there has been no centralized hoarding. The trading atmosphere is cautious. According to the 2025 annual report and 2026 first quarter report of Jujishun, the industry is deeply mired in oversupply caused by concentrated capacity release, weak downstream demand, and the entire industry is generally in a state of loss.
Market forecast:
In the short term, it is expected that PA6 will maintain a weak oscillation and a downward shift in focus in the future. On the cost side, the price of Sinopec caprolactam has been lowered, and the high operating rate in the industry continues to suppress prices. If there is no new price increase catalyst on the raw material side, cost support will further weaken. Before there is a significant rebound in terminal orders on the demand side, downstream willingness to replenish inventory is unlikely to significantly increase, and trading is likely to remain sluggish.

In the first half of April, the domestic ABS market fell from a high level, and the spot prices of most grades were lowered. According to data from Shengyishe Spot News, as of April 14th, the average price of ABS sample products was 12216.67 yuan/ton, a 4.31% decrease from the beginning of the month.
Fundamental analysis
Supply level: Entering April, the domestic ABS industry has relatively concentrated maintenance. By mid April, the overall operating level of the industry was around 59%, with an average weekly output of less than 130000 tons, and finished product inventory levels of over 195000 tons continued to accumulate. In the short term, there will be little change in production in the future, and the supply in the market will shift from tight balance to abundant. Overall, the ABS supply side provides moderate support for spot prices.
Cost factor: Since early April, the situation in the Middle East has been fluctuating, and the mentality of industry players has been divided. US crude oil inventories have accumulated beyond expectations, coupled with OPEC+’s firm stance on production cuts, causing crude oil futures to plummet simultaneously. The upstream three materials of ABS, which belong to the same petrochemical products, either remain stagnant or decline. The domestic demand for acrylonitrile in the market is gradually shrinking, and there is a shortage of spot buying gas. The sluggish transactions have suppressed the market’s continued upward trend, and negotiations in some northern markets have slightly declined. Under local sales pressure, there are downward expectations in the market.
The unilateral surge in the butadiene market has ended. Downstream enterprises such as butadiene rubber have reduced their demand for butadiene due to rigid procurement. Similar to acrylonitrile, the domestic market demand remains weak, and the tight supply and shortage of imported materials in some areas make it difficult for businesses to support high reporting. For the past half month, the price center of gravity has continued to decline. It is recommended to focus on tracking cost fluctuations, equipment production and maintenance progress, and downstream actual transaction follow-up changes in the future.
The styrene market fluctuated and fell. The geopolitical situation is fluctuating, and crude oil prices fluctuate after falling. Although overseas pure benzene facilities have reduced their load, the market mentality is divided. Downstream high price resistance is strong, and the cash flow of the 3S industry continues to suffer losses, resulting in a decrease in load. Currently, there is a lack of positive guidance in the market, and it is expected that styrene may follow the fluctuations in oil prices in the short term.
On the demand side: After returning from the small holiday in April, downstream ABS enterprises did not start as expected, and the consumption of the main terminal electrical shell industry was average. The profitability of terminal enterprises did not improve. The atmosphere of chasing price increases in the venue has slowed down, and there has been a reduction in replenishment and warehouse building operations. Merchants engage in profit taking operations that result in a downward trend, causing a drag on the price center of gravity. The current ABS finished product inventory position continues to rise, and the buyer camp’s resistance to high priced goods is expanding. Overall, the demand side has poor support for the ABS market.
Future forecast
The domestic ABS market fluctuated and fell in the first half of April. The production load of the aggregation plant has been reduced, but the on-site supply is still abundant. The cost and material market have weakened. The current ABS market is in a dual negative situation of high cost decline and weak demand. Under high production capacity, centralized maintenance has limited suppression on inventory accumulation. At present, spot prices are declining at a high level, and trading on the market is relatively quiet.

Since the geopolitical conflict in the Middle East, the domestic styrene butadiene rubber market has surged for a month and then slightly declined, with cost driven as the core theme. According to data from Shengyi Society, the mainstream price of styrene butadiene 1502 in early March was about 13140 yuan/ton, and as of April 10th, the price was 17400 yuan/ton, a cumulative increase of 32.40%, a decrease of 4.04% from the highest price of 18133 yuan/ton at the end of March.
The cost side is the core driving force behind the increase: the geopolitical conflict in the Middle East has pushed up international crude oil prices, driving up the prices of naphtha and ethylene cracking chains across the board. The raw material butadiene increased from 9993 yuan/ton to 16666 yuan/ton, an increase of 66.78%, due to the decrease in overseas cracking load, the increase in export orders, and the tight domestic spot market; Styrene rose by 33.32% synchronously, and the production cost of styrene butadiene rubber increased significantly. External raw material enterprises suffered losses and were forced to concentrate on raising factory prices, with a strong willingness to raise prices.
The tightening of the supply side exacerbates the supply-demand gap: In March, the domestic styrene butadiene rubber plant experienced an increase in maintenance due to the inverted cost of raw materials and a decrease in operating rates, resulting in an industry operating rate of around 74%, supporting the continuous upward movement of spot prices.
Demand side rigid demand support: The downstream tire, shoe material, and waterproofing membrane industries are in the traditional peak season, but high prices suppress procurement, mainly relying on small order rigid demand and on-demand procurement, limiting the room for growth. As of the week of April 3rd, the operating load of semi steel tires in domestic tire companies was 7.8%; The operating load of all steel tires in Shandong tire enterprises is 7.2%.
Future outlook:
From the perspective of the average spot price curve chart of Shengyi Society and the five level position method of Shengyi Society’s commodities, the spot price of styrene butadiene rubber has been above the 20 day moving average since the Middle East conflict, with a strong upward trend; On April 8th, the price of styrene butadiene rubber fell below the 20 day moving average for the first time, and on the same day, the price of styrene butadiene rubber was in a one-year super high position, indicating that there is a high probability that the price of styrene butadiene rubber will turn from rising to falling. However, the overall price is still above the 30 day and 60 day moving averages, and the specific decline remains to be observed.
Overall, there is still support on the cost side at present, but the geopolitical conflict has initially cooled down, and the high price of styrene butadiene rubber has slightly decreased; In the medium term, there may be a turning point from rising to falling in the next 1-2 months, with the risk mainly due to cost changes caused by geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East.