Propylene: Trading
What propylene costs in Texas, Europe and Asia
What this tab covers How it is bought and sold: buyers and sellers, price benchmarks and who publishes them, exchanges, contract types, traders, how Indian buyers price it, recent price points, and good sources to follow.Who buys, and where
- US Gulf (Mont Belvieu PGP, export terminals)
- Korea and Japan cracker surplus
- Middle East (mostly as PP)
Who sells, and from where
- China and Taiwan (derivative plants)
- Southeast Asia
- India (derivatives, small volumes)
Price benchmarks
| Benchmark | Publisher | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Propylene CFR China | S&P Global Platts / ICIS | spot, daily/weekly |
| Polymer-grade propylene Mont Belvieu | OPIS, Platts, Argus | spot pipeline, daily; monthly contract |
| Polymer-grade propylene NWE contract | Platts/ICIS | monthly contract, FD NWE |
| PP Raffia CFR Far East Asia | Platts | spot, weekly |
Exchanges
| Venue | Contract | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Dalian Commodity Exchange | Polypropylene futures (5 t lots) | most liquid proxy for propylene chain risk |
| CME Group | Mont Belvieu PGP and propane swaps (indicative) | propane swaps liquid; PGP thin |
Contract types
- Monthly contracts linked to naphtha or propane in Europe and US
- Spot cargoes on pressurised or semi-refrigerated LPG carriers
- Term propane supply deals for PDH (e.g. Wanhua with Kuwait Petroleum, Apr 2025)
Traders and distributors
- Vitol
- Trafigura
- Mitsui
- Mitsubishi Corporation
- Marubeni
- Sinochem
How Indian buyers price it
- Most Indian propylene is used captively by refiners; merchant sales are priced at import parity to CFR China or SE Asia.
- PP is sold on producer list prices (Reliance, IOCL, HMEL, GAIL) revised every one to two weeks.
- No current DGTR duty on propylene itself.
Recent price points
| Date | Price | Basis | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19 Nov 2025 | 23.75 c/lb (about $524/t) | FD US Gulf Coast PGP | S&P Global Platts H1 2026 |
| 23 Dec 2025 | €622.50/t | NWE polymer grade | S&P Global Platts H1 2026 |
| Dec 2025 | $700s/t (expected for 2026) | CFR Asia | ChemOrbis Dec 2025 |
| Aug 2026 | NE Asia import prices rose for two straight weeks; no level published | CFR NE Asia | ICIS via Hellenic Shipping News, Aug 2026 |
Good sources to follow
Platts Chemical Trends H1 2026freemium research site · S&P Global Commodity InsightsPropylene, PDH and PP margins
Mysteel Globalfreemium research site · MysteelChinese propylene, PO and PP capacity and prices
ChemOrbis plastics newsfreemium research site · ChemOrbisAsian olefins and PP prices
Argus Chemicals podcastsfree podcast · Argus MediaOlefin market outlooks