This week, PET prices first rose and then fell. According to the price data from Shengyi Society, as of May 16th, the average selling price of PET (polyester bottle flakes) was 6155 yuan/ton.
On the cost side, the main raw materials for polyester bottle flakes are PTA and ethylene glycol, and their prices are greatly affected by crude oil. On May 13th, the rise in crude oil prices pushed up the price of bottled chips, while on May 15th and 16th, crude oil prices fell, putting pressure on the price of bottled chips. On the 16th, the decline in international crude oil widened, and both polyester dual raw materials fell within the day, with insufficient support from the PET cost side. The quotation of the polyester bottle chip factory has been partially reduced by 50 yuan/ton, while some have remained stable, and the market focus has slightly declined.
On the supply side, the industry’s production has increased, and the supply of bottle chips is gradually becoming sufficient, which puts downward pressure on prices.
On the demand side, although the peak season for soft drink consumption is approaching and there is a demand for stocking downstream, the demand side is currently following up cautiously, and the overall supply and demand pattern has limited support for prices.
Overall, the core drivers of polyester bottle chip prices this week came from cost rebound and supply contraction, but the supply-demand contradiction has not fundamentally reversed. The actual trend still needs to pay attention to changes in external news, device changes, and demand recovery in the future.

According to the Commodity Market Analysis System of Shengyi Society, on May 15th, the reference price for cyclohexanone market in Shandong Province was 7375 yuan/ton. Compared with May 1st (reference price for cyclohexanone market was 7637 yuan/ton), the price decreased by 262 yuan/ton, a decrease of 3.44%.
From the Commodity Market Analysis System of Shengyi Society, it can be seen that in early May, the domestic cyclohexanone market in Shandong Province showed an overall trend of first falling and then slightly rebounding. During the Labor Day period, the cyclohexanone market remained relatively stable with little change in supply and demand news. In the first week after the holiday, the overall market was weak and declining. Downstream stocking was cautious after the holiday, and demand support was insufficient, putting pressure on market supply. The price center continued to decline, with low-end prices falling to around 7000 yuan/ton. Subsequently, the market for pure benzene on the raw material side fluctuated and rose, while the cost side provided stronger support for cyclohexanone. With the support of raw materials, the cyclohexanone market experienced an upward trend. As of May 15th, the domestic cyclohexanone market in Shandong has adjusted to around 7300-7400 yuan/ton.
Upstream: Recently, the market for raw material pure benzene has been rising. As of May 14th, the reference price of pure benzene was 5985.33 yuan/ton, an increase of 4.85% compared to May 1st (5708.67 yuan/ton).
Market analysis in the future
At present, the trading atmosphere in the cyclohexanone market is mild, with downstream rigid demand procurement as the main focus, and strong cost support for the market. The cyclohexanone data analyst from Shengyi Society predicts that in the short term, the cyclohexanone market in Shandong will mainly operate steadily with a slight upward trend, and specific changes in supply and demand information need to be closely monitored.

1、 Price trend
According to data monitored by Shengyi Society, as of April 27th, the average price of domestic industrial grade high-quality cyclohexane was 7600 yuan/ton. Currently, the cyclohexane market is stable and the overall market supply and demand are balanced. The mainstream market price is around 7500 yuan/ton.
2、 Market analysis
On the demand side: downstream demand is weak, the purchasing atmosphere is average, shipments are slow, inventory is high, and on the export side: there are currently no significant incremental orders, mainly contract customers, with limited new order quantities.
3、 Future forecast
The cyclohexane analyst from Shengyi Society believes that the cyclohexane market is currently maintaining its current trend, with a moderate downstream purchasing atmosphere and an overall market supply-demand balance, resulting in insufficient upward momentum for prices.

According to the Commodity Market Analysis System of Shengyi Society, the domestic natural rubber spot market has been fluctuating and rising recently (5.1-5.13). As of May 13th, the spot rubber market price in China’s natural rubber market was around 14748 yuan/ton, an increase of 3.08% from 14308 yuan/ton at the beginning of the month. Downstream tire production has decreased, weakening the support for natural rubber demand; The natural rubber raw material market continues to rise, and the cost of natural rubber continues to support it; The domestic natural rubber inventory continues to increase slightly, which has a negative impact on the natural rubber market. The easing of costs and international trade has led to a slight increase in natural rubber prices.
As of May 13th, the price of Thai glue was 60.25 baht/kg, an increase of 2.99% from 58.50 baht/kg at the end of April. Thailand announced a one month delay in rubber cutting. Currently, overseas rubber cutting work is not smooth, raw material prices remain high, and natural rubber still has cost support in the short term; But in the later stage, with overseas cutting, the expected supply of rubber raw materials gradually increased, and the price of natural rubber raw materials is expected to decrease in the later stage.
Recently (5.1~5.13), natural rubber inventories have continued to increase slightly, which has a bearish impact on the natural rubber market. As of May 11, 2025, the total inventory of Tianjiao bonded and general trade in Qingdao area was 618700 tons, an increase of 4500 tons or 0.73% compared to the previous period.
Recently (5.1-5.13), the significant decrease in downstream tire production has greatly weakened the support for the natural rubber market. As of May 9th, the operating load of semi steel tires in domestic tire enterprises is around 5.8%; The operating load of all steel tires in tire enterprises in Shandong region is about 4.5%.
Market forecast: Although there is a slight rebound in domestic and foreign raw material prices, expectations for the future continue to decline, downstream production is low, and support for natural rubber weakens. In addition, the inventory of Tianjiao Port is still at a high level; Overall, it is expected that the natural rubber market will return to weakness in the later stage.

According to the Commodity Market Analysis System of Shengyi Society, from May 1 to May 12, 2025, the toluene market first fell and then rose. On May 1st, the benchmark price of toluene was 5390 yuan/ton, and on May 12th, the benchmark price of toluene was 5340 yuan/ton, a decrease of 0.93%. After the May Day holiday, the crude oil market first fell and then rose, with overall fluctuations and an upward trend, driving the atmosphere of the toluene market. The recent market fluctuations are mainly affected by market atmosphere, with weak impact from the supply side. After the holiday, the demand for oil in the Shandong region is still good, and downstream purchases are entering the market. Refinery inventories in Shandong are generally running at a low level, and the ex factory prices of main refineries are generally increasing. The market sentiment in the East China region is still weak, and market trading is slightly sluggish. Overall, the toluene market has experienced a decline followed by an increase this cycle, largely following the fluctuations in crude oil prices.
On the cost side: During the May Day holiday, international oil prices fell significantly, mainly due to OPEC+increasing production beyond expectations, which was negative for international oil prices and led to a sharp decline in the crude oil market. After May Day, with the increasing oil restrictions imposed by the United States on a certain country, as well as the impact of the Israel Palestine conflict and the intention of negotiations between China and the United States, the trend of international oil prices has risen. Overall, in early May, international oil prices remained mainly fluctuating at a low level. As of May 9th, the main contract settlement price of WTI crude oil futures in the United States was $61.02 per barrel, and the main contract settlement price of Brent crude oil futures was $63.91 per barrel.
Supply side:
Sinopec’s toluene enterprise is operating normally, with stable production of equipment and many products for personal use, resulting in stable production and sales. As of May 12th, East China Company quoted 5300 yuan/ton, North China Company quoted 5300 yuan/ton, South China Company quoted 5300-5400 yuan/ton, and Central China Company quoted 5400 yuan/ton.
Demand side:
On May 12th, Sinopec Sales Company temporarily stabilized the price of xylene, with the current execution price of 6600 yuan/ton. This price is implemented in East China, North China, Central China, and South China. Yangzi Petrochemical, Zhenhai Petrochemical and other units are operating stably and sales are normal. As of May 9th, the closing prices of the para xylene market in Asia were $760-762/ton FOB Korea and $784-786/ton CFR China.
Market forecast: The crude oil market has shown significant fluctuations recently, while the toluene market has been greatly affected. There has been little change in supply and demand in the near future, and downstream demand is mainly driven by rigid demand. Under the influence of crude oil fluctuations, the toluene market is expected to experience mainly range based fluctuations in the near future, with specific attention paid to the trend of crude oil.