Purified terephthalic acid: Trading
Zhengzhou futures and how polyester makers hedge
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
- India
- Turkey
- Vietnam
- Pakistan and Bangladesh
- Europe
Who sells, and from where
- China
- Taiwan
- Thailand
- Indonesia
- South Korea
Price benchmarks
| Benchmark | Publisher | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Platts PTA FOB China and CFR India | S&P Global Platts | spot, daily |
| ICIS and CCF PTA East China | ICIS, CCF | domestic spot |
Exchanges
| Venue | Contract | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange | PTA futures, 5 t (indicative), physical delivery | Opened to overseas traders in 2018 (Textile Excellence, indicative); widely used by polyester makers to hedge. |
Contract types
- Monthly term contracts at PX formula plus processing fee
- Spot cargoes in containers or bulk bags
- Domestic list prices by Indian producers
Traders and distributors
- Chinese producer trading arms
- Mitsui
- Itochu
- Indian importers and yarn makers
How Indian buyers price it
- Indian PTA is priced at import parity to CFR India; Reliance and other producers set domestic prices against it (indicative).
- The BIS quality-control order on PTA stalled imports from China from mid-2023 and was revoked in late 2025 (S&P Global).
Recent price points
| Date | Price | Basis | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 21 Jan 2026 | $649/t | FOB China | Platts via S&P Global |
| 21 Jan 2026 | $687/t | CFR India | Platts via S&P Global |
Good sources to follow
Fibre2Fashion textile newsfree research site · Fibre2FashionPX, PTA, MEG and polyester price trends
S&P Global Commodity Insights chemicals newsfreemium research site · S&P GlobalPTA trade flows to India
Argus market opinion and analysis blogfree blog · Argus MediaPX-PTA chain
Chemical Weeklypaid newsletter · Sevak PublicationsIndian chemical prices and capacity