据安迅思新加坡8月4日消息，越南为遏制新冠病毒德尔塔变种病例激增而实施的最新行动限制令越南石化市场受到严重影响。
越南聚乙烯(PE)行业的市场参与者表示，由于严格的管控措施，他们面临严重的需求疲软。
越南许多PE下游工厂的经营者被要求为他们的工人提供食物和住宿，这样他们就可以呆在工厂里，而不会与更大的人口混杂在一起。不愿意或不能这样做的工厂将不得不关闭。
越南的一名PE市场消息人士表示:“由于新冠疫情封锁，本周几乎停止了所有业务，大部分客户也都这样做了。由于需求低迷，我们从这周开始销量下降，工厂停产或减产，我们也无法将货物从港口/仓库运送到客户的工厂，因为政府禁止旅行。”
尽管如此，越南PE价格上周仍大幅上涨，因为一些当地库存商预计，一旦当前措施放松，需求将会复苏，开始补充库存。
在PE管材级市场，下游PE管道加工商们表示，他们面临着运营工厂的人力有限，封锁限制也影响了下游管道工程。
在苯乙烯类树脂市场，自7月底以来，越南终端用户或经销商对苯乙烯类树脂(包括CFR进口树脂和本地交付树脂)的需求有所减弱，由于无法满足政府的更严格的活动限制，一些原始设备制造商决定关闭或以更低的开工率水平运营，当地市场的下游生产放缓。
源产越南的苯乙烯类(如发泡聚苯乙烯(EPS)和通用聚苯乙烯(GPPS))的卖家一直试图参与出口谈判，以限制未来潜在的库存压力，因为活动限制可能会持续到8月底。
考虑到其他一些石化工厂已经意外关闭，越南苯乙烯类装置短期关闭的可能性尚未排除。
一位地区贸易商表示:“所有人都在努力确保手头没有太多库存，无论是原料还是树脂。”
与此同时，越南下游鞋类制造商对乙烯-醋酸乙烯共聚物(EVA)树脂的购买势头喜忧参半。
其中一些加工商能够绕过长期封锁，通过设置临时的现场住房设施，如帐篷和为留在现场的工人提供食物，实现低开工率水平的生产。但由于卫生和物流方面的挑战，它们的原料采购是根据需要进行的。其他规模较小的加工商仍处于关闭状态。
由于制成品出口订单活跃，越南OEM鞋类制造商对EVA树脂的购买势头相对较为稳定，不过尚不清楚工厂何时能全面恢复生产。
张春晓 摘译自 ICIS
原文如下：
Vietnam petchems weighed by new restrictions as COVID-19 cases surge
Vietnam’s petrochemical markets are being weighed heavily by the latest movement curbs imposed to stem the surge in new cases of the Delta variant of the coronavirus.
The number of COVID-19 infections in the country has surged since late April this year and has forced authorities to impose movement restrictions, especially in Ho Chi Minh City, which accounts for more than 60% of the country's total infections.
Vietnam’s health ministry align="justify"> The country’s COVID-19 death toll was at 2,071 align="justify"> Market players in Vietnam’s polyethylene (PE) industry said they were facing severe demand weakness because of the tough restrictions.
Many downstream factory operators have been instructed to provide food and lodging for their workers so that they stay within factory premises and do not mingle with the larger population.
Factories which are unwilling or unable to do so will have to shut.
“We almost stopped all business this week because of the COVID-19 lockdown, and most of our customers have done the same,” said a market source in Vietnam.
“We don’t sell so much from this week because of low demand, factories have stopped production or reduced production rates, and also we can’t deliver cargo from port/warehouse to customer’s factory because the government has banned travel.”
Despite that, PE prices in Vietnam gained sharply last week as some local stockists moved to replenish inventories in anticipation of a resurgence in demand as soon as current measures are eased.
In the PE pipe grade market, downstream PE pipe converters said that they are facing limited manpower to operate plants, and lockdown restrictions have also affected downstream piping works.
In the styrenics market, the demand for resins - both align="justify"> Sellers for Vietnam-origin styrenics such as expandable polystyrene (EPS) and general purpose polystyrene (GPPS) have been trying to engage in export discussions instead to limit potential inventory pressures going forward, since movement restrictions may remain in place until end-August.
Potential short-term shutdowns of the styrenics units in Vietnam have not been ruled out, given that some other petrochemical units have already been shut unexpectedly.
This in turn could weigh align="justify"> “Everyone is trying to make sure they don’t have too much inventories align="justify"> Meanwhile, the buying momentum of ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) resins from downstream footwear manufacturers in Vietnam was mixed.
Some of these converters were able to work around extended lockdowns to enable a low level of production by setting up temporary align="justify"> But with hygiene and logistics challenges, their feedstock procurement has been done on a need-to basis. Other smaller-scale converters have remained shut.The buying momentum of EVA resins from OEM footwear manufacturers in Vietnam was comparatively more stable due to buoyant export orders for finished goods, although it remained unclear when factories can fully resume production.