Global Chemicals & Materials News (November 3–November 9, 2025)

Asia-Pacific

BASF — Zhanjiang Verbund: first core products start production

Date: November 5, 2025.

Event: BASF commenced production of the first products from the core of its Zhanjiang Verbund site in southern China — a central milestone in the company’s largest single investment project.

Impact Pathway: Newly online base-chemical capacity in China increases local availability of petrochemical intermediates (steam-cracker derivatives) and supports BASF’s local-for-local strategy in APAC, reducing import dependence for downstream converters. Financials: Projected to be a long-term revenue and margin contributor as downstream plants ramp; near-term capex already incurred (largest single investment for BASF), with benefit realization depending on ramp speed and product spreads.

Operations: Stepwise start-up of core units; full core expected to be progressively commissioned by end-2025 / early-2026 (company guidance).

Beneficiaries: Downstream converters and local OEMs in China/SE Asia who can source intermediates closer to plants.

Pressured: Export-oriented traders and importers who relied on foreign ethylene/derivative shipments.

Watchpoints: Ramp-up speed of steam cracker and downstream units; product pricing vs global spreads; local feedstock (naphtha) economics.

Lotte Chemical — New cracker in Indonesia begins commercial ops

Date: November 6, 2025.

Event: Indonesian President inaugurated Lotte Chemical’s new petrochemical complex (Cilegon); the new naphtha cracker began commercial operations in October and can produce ~1 million t/yr ethylene.

Impact Pathway: Adds significant local ethylene capacity in SE Asia → potential downward pressure on regional ethylene/PE feedstock costs and improves Indonesia’s self-sufficiency.

Financials: Large up-front capex (reported ~$4bn) — long-term upside for local margins if domestic demand absorbs output; near-term effects depend on regional polymer demand and export opportunity.

Operations: Facility now commercially producing; expected to feed local derivatives chains and export where margins permit.

Beneficiaries: Indonesian and SE Asian polymer producers, converters and downstream manufacturers.

Pressured: Regional ethylene/PE importers; nearby crackers facing margin compression.

Watchpoints: Regional polymer demand recovery, freight/arbitrage economics, naphtha vs LPG feedstock spreads.

PetroChina — retire 19 old refining/chemical units

Date: November 6, 2025.

Event: PetroChina announced plans to permanently shut 19 ageing refining and chemical units as part of efforts to reduce overcapacity and modernize the sector.

Impact Pathway: Capacity rationalization reduces low-margin output and can tighten certain regional intermediate supplies, with knock-on effects up the value chain (e.g., aromatic feedstocks, certain C4/C5 derivatives).

Financials: Expected to improve company profitability and asset quality over time; near-term one-off closure costs and potential regional supply adjustments.

Operations: Permanent shutdowns of identified units; company evaluating broader fleet for further efficiency upgrades.

Beneficiaries: Competing modern units with higher efficiency; domestic players producing higher-value chemicals (EV / solar supply chains).

Pressured: Older, low-utilisation units and trading firms positioned on export arbitrage.

Watchpoints: Specific product lines affected (ethylene, aromatics), impacts on domestic prices, and any government incentives to re-tool capacity.

Europe

Sun Chemical — expands perylene pigment capacity (Ludwigshafen)

Date: November 5, 2025.

Event: Sun Chemical announced capacity expansion for high-performance perylene pigments at its Ludwigshafen site — ~+200 tonnes finished goods/intermediates.

Impact Pathway: Increased supply of high-performance pigments relieves tightness for coatings, plastics and specialty colorants; may moderate recent price volatility for specific pigment grades.

Financials: Investment supports long-term revenue visibility in high-margin pigment markets; short-term capex but expected to stabilize supply/demand balance.

Operations: Site expansion to support global customers; logistical focus on serving EU automotive/coatings markets.

Beneficiaries: Coatings, specialty plastics and masterbatch producers seeking reliable high-performance pigments.

Pressured: Smaller pigment suppliers facing margin pressure from increased supply.

Watchpoints: Adoption rates for new pigment volumes, lead time improvements, and feedstock (intermediate) supply.

Evonik — welcomes Germany’s infrastructure fund but flags uncertainties

Date: November 4, 2025.

Event: Evonik publicly welcomed the German government’s proposed €500bn infrastructure fund / €46bn tax package but stressed key implementation details remain unclear.

Impact Pathway: If deployed, infrastructure stimulus could lift demand for construction-linked chemicals (insulation foams, coating additives, piping materials), supporting specialty chemical volumes in 2026+.

Financials: Evonik reported weaker Q3 results (core profit decline reported) and views the stimulus as a potential medium-term demand tailwind, though timing / allocation uncertain.

Operations: Company monitoring policy rollout; near-term operations still contend with weak end-market demand.

Beneficiaries: Producers of construction and building-material chemistries (foam systems, coating additives).

Pressured: Companies with exposure to weak consumer demand and energy cost volatility.

Watchpoints: Government implementation timeline, funding allocation to construction projects, and German/European macro indicators.

North America

Eastman — Q3 2025: weak volumes in Fibers and Intermediates

Date: Q3 2025 results announced early November 2025.

Event: Eastman reported Q3 declines (Fibers – sales revenue down ~24%; Chemical Intermediates down) driven by volume/mix weakness, inventory destocking and soft end-market demand.

Impact Pathway: Weak demand in building & construction, textiles and some industrial markets reduces offtake for intermediates and fibers → lower capacity utilization and margin pressure for producers.                         

Financials: Reduced revenue and EBIT pressure in segments; companies emphasizing cost control and cash preservation.

Operations: Inventory destocking by customers continues to depress volumes; producers may adjust maintenance / operating rates.                   

Beneficiaries: Buyers who can leverage lower spot/contract prices for raw materials.

Pressured: Fiber producers, commodity intermediate suppliers, and converters reliant on high utilization.

Watchpoints: North American construction demand indicators, inventory restocking timing, and export demand recovery.

Latin America

Americas / LA — polyethylene market sentiment weak; logistics & regulatory shifts

Date: market commentary through early Nov 2025 (reports published Oct–Nov).

Event: Market intelligence indicates weak PE demand in the Americas with risk of a sales “freeze” in some markets; logistics players in Latin America announce capacity and agility improvements for peak season.

Impact Pathway: Soft polymer demand reduces offtake for ethylene/PE and pressure on producers’ margins; logistics improvements may mitigate some delivery risk but do not solve weak demand.

Financials: Pressure on commodity polymer spreads; buyers negotiating more aggressively; some producers cut runs or reassign export flows.         

Operations: Logistics providers signal digitisation/ agility investments to manage peak; producers monitor inventory/shipments closely.                    

Beneficiaries: Large integrated players with flexible export capability and buyers locking favorable contract terms.

Pressured: Short-cycle traders and sellers exposed to seasonal demand dips.

Watchpoints: PE spot vs contract spreads in the Americas, freight & port congestion indicators, and local regulatory changes raising compliance costs.

Materials & Sustainability (cross-region)

Yeast-derived protein fibres (brewing waste) — research & pilot commercialization signals

Date: coverage Nov 3–5, 2025

Event: Academic / industry reports highlight biodegradable textile fibres spun from brewery yeast waste (yeast protein), demonstrating promising mechanical properties and potential lower environmental footprint vs cotton/petroleum-based fibres.                                                          

Impact Pathway: If scalable and cost-competitive, this creates a new bio-based feedstock stream for textiles and nonwoven applications — a potential future competitor to some petrochemical-derived fibres.                       

Financials: Still R&D / pilot phase — commercial economics depend on scale, feedstock sourcing (brewery waste streams) and processing costs; expect early premium pricing in niche sustainable apparel markets.                       

Operations: Technology at pilot stage; integration with beverage co-product streams and fiber spinning processes under study.

Beneficiaries: Sustainable-fashion brands, specialty textile converters, bio-materials startups.

Pressured: Commodity polyester/cotton in niche sustainable segments; incumbent suppliers may need differentiation.

Watchpoints: Tech-scale milestones, LCA (life-cycle analysis) validations, and pilot → commercial partnerships with textile mills/brands.