Polyethylene Terephthalate Price | Current and Forecast
Monitor Polyethylene Terephthalate Prices Worldwide
See monthly PET prices in 5 locations: US, S. America, Africa, Middle East, SE Asia, Europe, C. Europe, NE Asia. Also check PET price history since 2007 and forecasts. Subscribe now to Intratec Primary Commodity Prices and gain access to current prices of 244 commodities, including PET.
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Data Legend. The PET price chart shows the prices in USA Dollar per metric ton (USD/mt) in 8 locations, as follows:
- US: transaction, cif
- S. America: transaction, fob, Brazil
- Africa: transaction, fob, South Africa
- Middle East: transaction, fob, Turkey
- SE Asia: transaction, fob, India
- Europe: transaction, cif, Italy
- C. Europe: transaction, cif, Poland
- NE Asia: transaction, fob, Taiwan
Data Use. PET prices are provided as an annual subscription where subscribers have access to reliable pricing data of 244 commodities worldwide. To better understand data provided by Intratec Primary Commodity Prices, check the following documents: Price Assessment Basis , Commodities Specifications , Methodology , User Guide , and Glossary .
Price Dynamics. The Polyethylene Terephthalate price in United States increased during September 2018 to 1,420 USD per metric ton, which represents a slight rise of 1% compared to the previous month’s value. On a year-over-year basis, Polyethylene Terephthalate prices in United States increased significantly by 28%. Meanwhile, in Brazil, the average price of Polyethylene Terephthalate amounted to 1,420 USD per metric ton, from 1,070 USD per metric ton one year earlier. On a month-over-month basis, the Polyethylene Terephthalate price in Brazil is 0.7% higher than the price one month before.
The price of Polyethylene Terephthalate in South Africa declined slightly throughout September 2018, reaching 1,260 USD per metric ton. The price in South Africa is 2% lower than the average price in the previous month and 34% higher than the average price one year before. In contrast, Polyethylene Terephthalate prices in Turkey increased modestly during September 2018, reaching 1,410 USD per metric ton, which means a rise of 1% from the previous month’s price and a rise of 31% from the previous year’s price.
The Polyethylene Terephthalate prices in India experienced a modest decline of 20 USD per metric ton from the prior month's price, to 1,280 USD per metric ton. Such price movement in India meant a decrease of 2% on a monthly basis and a rise of 31% on a yearly basis. On the other hand, in September 2018, the Polyethylene Terephthalate price in Italy witnessed a decline of 10 USD per metric ton when compared against the previous month's price, to 1,380 USD per metric ton. The September 2018 price in Italy is 24% higher than the price one year before.
In Poland, the average price of Polyethylene Terephthalate was 1,390 USD per metric ton on September 2018 – a increase of 60 USD per metric ton, or 5%, compared with the previous month. On a year-over-year basis, the Polyethylene Terephthalate price in Poland is 20% higher than the price one year before.
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About Polyethylene Terephthalate. Polyethylene Terephthalate (a.k.a. PET) is a thermoplastic polyester with an enormous market volume in bottle resin. The combination of properties like hardness and rigidity, dimensional stability, chemical resistance and lightweight, makes PET a flexible material widely used in several applications. It is also worth noting that PET is the most common thermoplastic polymer resin of the polyester family, and being a 100% recyclable material so broadly used, is the most recycled plastic worldwide.
All this make Polyethylene Terephthalate the most important thermoplastic polyester and one of the most produced polymers, along with polyethylene, polypropylene and polyvinyl chloride. Like other polyesters, PET is produced industrially by direct esterification of dicarboxylic acids with diols. Typical production processes are based on polymerization of ethylene glycol (MEG) with either purified terephthalic acid (PTA) or dimethyl terephthalate (DMT) in the presence of a metal catalyst.
Depending on the selected application and the physical and mechanical properties desired, different grades of PET can be produced, with different molecular weights, densities and viscosities. Also, both batch and continuous processes are used for PET manufacturing. While continuous processes are more suitable for the production of commodity resins, batch processes are more used for smaller quantities of specialty resins.
It must be stored in a way that heat, moisture, and sunlight are avoid. Also, It is necessary to stored in a well ventilated and dry location.
The first commercial route to PET was based on the reaction of dimethyl terephthalate (DMT) with excess ethylene glycol. Nowadays, most of Polyethylene Terephthalate is produced from esterification of purified terephthalic acid and ethylene glycol, due to advantages related to product quality and cost. Raw materials and the respective production processes employed in the manufacturing of Polyethylene Terephthalate are listed below.
- Ethylene glycol + terephthalic acid (ester formation),
- Ethylene glycol + dimethyl terephthalate (transesterification)
The uses and applications of Polyethylene Terephthalate may vary according to its specification. The main forms of Polyethylene Terephthalate are textile fiber grade; and bottle grade.
Most of global PET production is primarily consumed in the manufacture of staple and filament fibers and, to a lesser extent, films. Among applications requiring PET with higher molecular weights, the most important ones are bottles used for packing of water and soft drinks, frozen food trays and technical fibers. For such applications, the PET obtained from melt-phase polymerization is further processed in “solid state” (solid state polymerization), so as to achieve the required molecular weight. In addition, it is used as amorphous moulding compounds; blow-moulded soft drink/condiment containers; and moulding compounds.
