On September 3, the rare earth index was 348 points, which was the same as yesterday. It was 65.20% lower than the highest point in the cycle (2011-12-06), which was 28.41% higher than the lowest point of 271 points on September 13, 2015. (Note: Cycle refers to 2011-12-01 to date)

The average price of metal lanthanum in rare earth metals is 407,500 yuan / ton; the average price of metal bismuth is 1.625 million yuan / ton; the average price of metal bismuth is 660,000 yuan / ton. The average price of lanthanum oxide in rare earth oxide is 325,000 yuan / ton; the average price of cerium oxide is 1.145 million yuan / ton; the average price of cerium oxide is 410,000 yuan / ton; the average price of cerium oxide is 316,500 yuan / ton. The average price of niobium alloy in rare earth alloy is 41,250 yuan/ton; the average price of niobium-iron alloy is 1.15 million yuan/ton.

Recently, the index of rare earth mining has been released, totaling 120,000 tons, an increase of 15,000 tons compared with 2017. However, the price trend of some rare earth products in China has temporarily stabilized, and the price of niobium oxide has risen slightly. Most rare earth separation enterprises have stopped production, resulting in supply. Decline, especially some mainstream rare earth oxides, the supply performance is tight, and the recent recent procurement cycle, some commodity prices in the rare earth market are temporarily stable. Recently, the trading volume in the market is very limited. The major manufacturers of products are also cautiously waiting to see each other. The mutual inquiry has become more frequent. The downstream receiving goods are not actively leading to the low price of some rare earth products. The rare earth analysts of the business community are expected to be in the near future. The impact of the US trade war, the export of rare earth to the United States is subject to certain restrictions, but the recent rare earth market is about to enter the procurement cycle, it is expected that the rare earth market will rebound in the later period.

Although plastic straws are small, they are difficult to recycle and can cause serious harm to our environment and other organisms. Faced with the global challenges brought about by disposable plastic pollution, many governments around the world have set off a “plastic limit” boom this year, and catering giants have stopped supplying or promised to stop supplying plastic straws.

Introduced a “plastic limit order”

Recently, the United States KFC, South Korea’s well-known chain coffee shop “An Qi Linuo coffee” and so on have stopped providing plastic straws in the store; McDonald’s also intends to switch to paper straws in the UK and Ireland stores in 2019, trials in some stores in the United States Plastic straws; all Starbucks coffee chain stores plan to bid farewell to plastic straws by 2020, and are expected to reduce more than 1 billion plastic straws per year.

The British government announced earlier this year that it plans to promote a new “plastic limit order” in England to completely ban the sale of disposable plastic products such as plastic straws, plastic stir bars and cotton swabs with plastic rods.

In May of this year, the European Commission proposed a “plastic limit order” scheme, recommending the ban of disposable plastic products such as plastic straws, and replacing the plastic straws with straws made of more environmentally friendly and sustainable materials.

Before the EU ban was officially launched, many supermarkets in Germany have launched the “plastic limit” program. The German Reve Group and the supermarket chain “Leidel” announced in July that they would stop providing plastic straw products at the sales outlets. The supermarket chain “Edka” also said that it would develop reusable items to replace disposable plastic products.

More and more local governments in the United States are also addressing environmental concerns that may arise from plastic straws, and some cities in Florida, New Jersey, and California have banned plastic straws. In July of this year, Seattle became the first major US city to ban plastic straws. Some cities such as New York City and San Francisco have also introduced legislation to ban plastic straws.

Small straw big hazard

At present, the consumption of plastic straws in the world is staggering. In the United States alone, about 500 million plastic straws are discarded every day, and the total length of the joints can be two and a half times around the earth.

Because plastic straws are difficult to reuse, most food and beverage stores do not classify them as recyclable waste, so the ultimate fate of plastic straws falls into landfills or floats on the ocean. A plastic pipette has a service life of only about 20 minutes, but it takes more than 200 years to naturally degrade into small molecules. Plastic straws that enter the waters are often eaten by animals such as sea turtles, seabirds, and fish.

British Minister of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Michael Goff said in a statement that disposable plastic products are a scourge to the ocean, causing serious damage to the environment and wildlife, and people must take action to protect the marine ecology. British waste disposal company “commercial waste” listed plastic straws as “hard to recycle” items, calling it “the ultimate waste of mankind.”

Statistics show that more than 8 million tons of plastic waste enters the ocean every year, including plastic straws, which has a serious impact on marine life, fisheries and tourism, resulting in economic losses of 8 billion US dollars. Plastic waste kills millions of seabirds, 100,000 marine mammals and countless fish every year. Studies have shown that if the status quo is ignored, by 2050, the weight of plastic waste in the ocean will exceed the total weight of fish.

Plastic waste not only harms marine life, but also threatens human health. Plastic waste will gradually break down in the ocean, forming a large number of microplastic particles less than 5 mm in diameter. The toxic and harmful substances contained in the microplastic particles themselves and the toxic and harmful substances adsorbed in the water will accumulate through the food chain and may eventually enter the human body.

Advocate rejection of disposable plastic products

Penny Lyndeck, a molecular biologist at the Plymouth Ocean Research Institute in the United Kingdom, said in an interview with Xinhua News Agency that the “plastic limit order” will help consumers change the habit of using plastic straws, and consumers will soon be able to adapt to alternatives. If more and more companies promote alternatives such as paper straws, the cost of replacement may fall, and the cost factor will not make it difficult for merchants to comply with the “plastic limit order”.

On this year’s World Environment Day, the United Nations issued a message calling on consumers to refuse to use disposable plastic products, purchase recyclable goods, and develop reasonable spending habits in their lives. Consumers can’t just play the role of a participant, but should also be a driving factor in driving changes in the behavior of suppliers and retailers.

According to Platts Energy Consulting Mexico City on August 28th, Mexican national oil company Pemex said on Monday that the company’s oil production in July decreased by 5,400 barrels per day from the previous month to 1.84 million barrels per day, compared with the same period last year. 14.5 million barrels per day, mainly due to reduced production of mature fields in southern Mexico.

Since the production peak of 3.4 million barrels per day in 2004, the oil production of the Mexican National Oil Company has continued to decline. The Mexican National Oil Company remains the most important oil and gas producer in Mexico, as private production has not increased significantly since the Mexican energy reform in December 2013.

With reference to the prediction of polypropylene production capacity and production volume, combined with the further increase of domestic polypropylene self-sufficiency capacity and the slow decline of total import volume, it is predicted that China’s apparent consumption in 2018 will be around 24 million tons, and China will be apparent by 2020. Consumption is expected to reach around 32 million tons.

From the perspective of consumption structure, the consumption of polypropylene is not limited to the fields of plastic knitting, injection molded parts, biaxially stretched film, etc., and the growth of special materials such as fiber, pipe, automobile and electrical appliances is obvious.

From the perspective of product substitution, the substitution of recycled materials for new materials is greatly reduced, and the import volume of waste plastics is reduced. Under the severe supply shortage of imported materials, domestic materials have become the mainstream source of goods, and new materials have replaced renewable materials, which is also the apparent consumption of PP. The increase in volume provides opportunities.

The proportion of downstream consumption regions

From the perspective of consumption areas, East China, North China (including Shandong) and South China are China’s largest producers of plastic products and China’s main polypropylene consumer. In recent years, the proportion of consumption in these three regions has exceeded 80%. East China, where the economy is developed and the economy maintains rapid growth, is the largest consumer area for polypropylene, followed by South China and North China. The four provinces of Guangdong, Shandong, Jiangsu and Zhejiang are the most concentrated areas of China’s polypropylene processing enterprises. There are many companies engaged in plastic processing. The plastic products in these areas are not only large in output, but also high in grade. The demand for raw materials is also diversified and specialized. It can be said that the plastics processing industry in these regions represents the current technical level of China’s plastics processing industry.

China PP’s production capacity is mainly distributed in East China, South China and Northwest China. Consumption is mainly concentrated in East China, South China and North China. Imported PP mainly flows into East China and South China. East China, South China and North China are major PP consumption areas. Most of the manufacturers set up distribution points in these three regions, and the trade is very active. There is also a small amount of commodity flow between the three places. East China-North China is usually close to the distance, usually using the mode of transportation, and there is more shipping between South China and East China.

First, the price trend

Recently, the butadiene market is in short supply and the market price is further higher. Business community monitoring showed that as of August 23, the price of butadiene was 13,150 yuan / ton, and the price rose by 31.62%.

Second, the analysis of influencing factors

Products: domestic butadiene market price is scarce, market supply is in short supply, and it is heard that the northern source of goods is sent to East China, the transaction price is 14100-14200 yuan / ton, downstream buyers maintain just need to purchase. At present, the supply of goods in the domestic market continues to be tight. Only a few manufacturers in the north are exporting normally. It is expected that the market for butadiene will be high in the short term, focusing on the downstream market. The market price of butadiene in Shandong is scarce, and the supply of goods in the market is in short supply. It is heard that the northern source of goods has been delivered at a price of 14100-14200 yuan/ton, and downstream buyers just need to purchase. The market for butadiene in East China is relatively stable, traders are reluctant to sell at low prices, and the overall market trading atmosphere is relatively light.

Industry chain: downstream, styrene-butadiene rubber: domestic styrene-butadiene rubber market rebounded, the industry’s offer has gradually increased to above the ex-factory price and a small increase. Butadiene rubber, the domestic butadiene rubber market showed a rising market. The overall offer price of the market rose, and some merchants offered a price of 14,000 yuan / ton. On-site sporadic merchant purchases, the transaction price increased. SBS: Domestic SBS market oil glue, dry rubber roads are narrowly adjusted, and downstream purchases are on demand.

Third, the market outlook

On the positive side, the supply of butadiene market is still tight, and the operating load of some private enterprises is low, and the supply price of some large areas of Sinopec is raised. On the bearish side, downstream buyers are close to the high-priced acceptance capacity of the US dollar and the RMB price, and the export arbitrage window is closed; the downstream synthetic rubber industry is in a downturn. The butadiene analysts of the business community expect that the market for butadiene will be high and the downstream market will be concerned.