Prices fall less than expected / Weak demand keeps stocks high / Long production downtimes expected

As expected, a further portion of the quarterly reductions were carried over into the monthly prices. However, since there was still some material in stock from the previous, higher-priced quarters, producers did everything they could to at least delay passing on the reductions in full. Price cuts thus remained smaller than was widely expected. Weak demand and a more sluggish outflow of material meant that stocks remained full. Although the PIE panel occasionally reported a slight improvement in demand compared with the previous month, the overall situation was still far from normal.

In December, too, a further slice of the quarterly reductions will be due. What remains unclear is whether there will be any special offers in what is effectively only half a working month. Motivation for this could come from the desire to make the end-of-year balance sheet look better. Compounding lines will likely run even more slowly in December than they already have been, and several distributors plan to shut down by mid-month. It is likely to be a very calm December with extended production breaks between Christmas and the New Year.

POM was once again the exception. As in the previous month, some producers succeeded in carrying over the contract prices. Falling prices were therefore only to be seen in spot market offers and special deals. On the demand side, some contacts reported a slightly brighter order situation, but overall demand remained subdued.

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