China Morning Snapshot – 02 February 2021

Dalian Commodity Exchange extended the weakening trend throughout the morning session amid thin trading ahead of the holidays despite the surge in the international equity market and crude oil complex.

Details on the spot and futures prices are shown in the following table:

Total inventories at Sinopec and CNPC’s warehouses digested as much as 65,000 tons in the previous trading day to 550,000 tons on 2 February 2021. (Correction: Total stocks were at 615,000 tons on 1 February 2021. The previous Snapshot reported at 605,000 tons.) 

The significant reduction in the stocks is a result of backlog clearance for deals concluded during late January 2021 but unable to book transportations. 

Meanwhile, players reported that sentiment in the local ground continues to deteriorate. Several traders informed of receiving not a single inquiry through the morning session regardless of the lower prices. “Good news is that we have depleted most of the on-hand inventory and facing no sales pressure at the moment. Throughout January, we have also managed to re-export a number of HDPE cargoes to the South American market,” a trader added.