Presentation by Daniel Stricker

Daniel Stricker (editor-in-chief of KI Kunststoff Information magazine) spoke about the fundamental shifts in the raw materials market and explained the current under-supply of the market. He presented several factors in the European PE crisis causing a steep price increase: For one thing, the decreased number of refineries reduces the regional raw material supply (naphta), causing an increased dependence on imports. European capacities are being consolidated, imports are hampered by increases in tariffs. At the same time, the lower Euro exchange rate discourages US-Dollar based suppliers. Productions are increasingly failing (possibly due to missing re-investments).