Market Advisory Service - Global Acetyls

Duration: Short-term – 2-year price forecast and market outlook

The global Acetyls market, covering acetic acid, vinyl acetate monomer (VAM), acetic anhydride, and acetate esters such as ethyl acetate and butyl acetate, remains heavily saturated, with ample supply and persistently weak demand driving producers worldwide to focus on aggressive inventory reduction and cost control as year-end approaches. Operating rates are subdued across all regions, particularly in Asia, where new capacity additions in mainland China continue to pressure domestic prices downward, intensify export competition, and reshape global trade flows, even as several key units undergo extended outages.

North America and Europe are experiencing ongoing downward pressure on acetic acid and VAM spot export prices. Although feedstock costs, most notably methanol and ethylene, are at historically low levels, producer cash margins have tightened to critical thresholds in an oversupplied Western Hemisphere. In addition, West European natural gas prices remain significantly higher than in other regions, placing local producers at a competitive disadvantage and resulting in campaign-based operating strategies for several acetyls assets.

Demand across major end-use sectors, including paints and coatings and polyester (PTA), remains soft, weighed down by macroeconomic uncertainty and the effects of U.S. import tariffs and counter-tariffs. In this environment, companies must adopt stringent cost management strategies while leveraging deep market intelligence on arbitrage opportunities, regional supply dynamics, and trade flows to navigate this prolonged low-price cycle. Despite near-term challenges, long-term growth opportunities persist in derivative markets, especially EVA, supported by robust expansion in the global solar energy sector.

Comprehensive monthly market price, supply, demand, and trade data and analysis for:

• Acetic Acid
• Acetic Anhydride
• N-butyl Acetate
• Ethyl Acetate
• Vinyl Acetate Monomer

Duration: Short-term – 2-year price forecast and market outlook

The Global Acetyls Market Advisory report provides clients with a comprehensive yet focused assessment of regional and global markets for acetic acid, vinyl acetate monomer (VAM), acetic anhydride, ethyl acetate, and n-butyl acetate. The report delivers timely market updates, cash cost analysis, pricing and margin data across all covered products and regions, along with expert commentary on key global feedstocks—including crude oil, China coal, methanol, and ethylene. It also provides detailed supply–demand balances, trade flow analysis, and forward-looking forecasts.

The depth and breadth of this coverage ensure that clients are equipped to make informed strategic decisions both regionally and globally. Unlike competitors that focus on isolated value-chain segments, this service provides a fully integrated value-chain perspective, enabling a holistic understanding of upstream feedstock trends, production economics, and downstream market behavior.

The Global Acetyls Market Advisory Service offers a complete view of world markets for acetic acid and vinyl acetate, highlighting their interconnections with upstream raw materials and downstream end-use applications.

Complementing this, the World Analysis – Acetyls Service delivers a full-scale, in-depth evaluation of global acetyls markets by country and region for all major products, including acetic acid, VAM, acetic anhydride, ethyl acetate, n-butyl acetate, sec-butyl acetate, MCAA, EVOH, EVA, PVA, PVOH, VAE, and acetic-acid-based ethanol. The service features a historical and forecast capacity database, detailed country- and regional-level trade grids, long-term supply–demand balances through 2050, and comprehensive production economics for acetic acid and VAM.

Duration: Short-term – 2-year price forecast and market outlook