Assistir: Market Movers Americas, Jan 24-28: Texas petrochemical complex ramps up; US power and bunker prices soar

In this week's Market Movers: ExxonMobil and Sabic ramp up their new petrochemical complex in Texas, US bunker fuels prices weigh on tanker earnings, a cold snap sends power prices soaring, and steelmakers prepare to release fourth-quarter earnings.

Looking first at the petrochemical market, global major ExxonMobil and Saudi-based Sabic are ramping up their petrochemical complex just outside of Corpus Christi this month, adding to 200 billion dollars worth of new petrochemical infrastructure built or planned in the US over the last five years. The 9.4 billion-dollar complex features the world's largest monoethylene glycol plant, two polyethylene plants and a 1.8 million metric ton per year cracker labeled the second largest of its kind in the global market. This cracker was designed to feed ethylene into three additional units, which will produce MEG and plastic resins destined largely for export.

In shipping, record-high prices for 0.5% sulfur bunker fuels on the US Gulf Coast have sent clean tanker earnings into the red in January. Shipowners say daily earnings on spot voyages from the USGC to Europe stand around negative 200 dollars per day. Freight costs fell midmonth as crude prices rose, and activity has fallen off for cargoes with end-January laycans. Rates on the trans-Atlantic run to Europe fell 10% week on week and were talked around 17 dollars and 34 cents per metric ton last Friday. Available tonnage in the region looked long ahead of the weekend, but owners have expressed optimism that a new batch of February-loading cargoes could turn sentiment around. This brings us to our social media question of the week: What does February hold for the clean tankers market? Will tanker earnings return to the black with a fresh batch of cargoes or linger in the red? Tweet us your thoughts using the hashtag #PlattsMM.

Moving over to the metals market, three out of four of the largest steelmakers in the US will release their fourth-quarter results this week. Earnings are expected to be strong due to firm pricing for hot-rolled coil. Steel Dynamics is due to announce its results on January 24, followed by Nucor on January 27 and US Steel on January 28. Hot-rolled coil prices have fallen about 560 dollars per straight ton since they hit an all-time high of 1,960 dollars per straight ton last September. Despite this, prices are still above the 10-year average between 2010 and 2019.

Finally, let's look at rising power prices in the eastern half of the country. A cold snap is sending temperature projections as low as 18 degrees below seasonal norms, and along the coast, prices have spiked in at least two sub-regions as heating demand rises. We last saw New York ISO's Zone G on-peak balance-of-the-week prices at more than five times the month-to-date average. ISO New England's Mass Hub on-peak balance of the week was valued in the 180s dollar per megawatt hour, three times higher than the month-to-date average, while the PJM Interconnection's West Hub on-peak balance of the week jumped 76% to trade near 120 dollars per megawatt hour, with peakload forecast 15% higher.

The Platts Atlas of Energy Transition is your map to the sustainable commodity markets of the future. You can explore the Atlas by visiting the address displayed on your screen. Thanks for kicking off your Monday with us and have a great week ahead.