US government has filed petition against import of Acetone from Singapore, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Belgium and Spain. US firms AdvanSix, Olin and Altivia filed on 19 February the petitions with the International Trade Commission (ITC) and the US Department of Commerce for the imposition of ADDs on these items. According to ITC data, US’ acetone imports in January to November 2018 surged 97.2% year on year to 167,075 tonnes. This followed the idling of Shell Chemical's older Phenol 3 plant at its Deer Park facility in Texas in early 2018. The plant was producing 240,000 tonnes/year of phenol and 144,000 tonnes/year of acetone. The prospects of US ADDs being imposed on acetone are worrying market players in Asia as the region is awash with supply. “If ADD were indeed imposed on the Asian and Saudi cargoes, the export volume may decrease, leaving even longer supply in Asia. In the long run, acetone prices may decrease,” an Asia-based distributor said.
