Weak demand conditions to prevent HDPE (Raffia) price from turning northwards – 19 Feb 2014

Demand for the Raffia grade of the HDPE material is going to remain inactive in Indian polymer markets as sales of bags, made of the grade, have been slowing down in the country, according to market inputs received. Several manufacturers of such bags have told Indianpetrochem that demand for the bags have become sluggish during the recent past, due to which, they lowered their production rates. Moreover, they also have not foreseen any strengthening of demand for the bags in the near future. As a result, traders in the country's polymer markets experienced sluggish demand conditions for the HDPE (Raffia) material. 
 

A Delhi-based trader told the website," Sales of the HDPE (Raffia) material have become very dull as packaging bag manufacturers have lessened their off-takes as they have lowered their production rates in view of their sales slowing down." He further commented, " Under these circumstances, there is no prospect of the price for the HDPE grade going up in the market in the coming days, even if producers raise their ex-work prices on account of international price movements." The trader quoted the prevailing price for the Raffia grade of HDPE at Rs 123 a kg.
 

Raffia bag manufacturers across the major manufacturing pockets in Delhi, Ahmedabad and Mumbai, contacted by the website in the implied context, told that demand for their products had been slowing down, and they attributed the slowdown mainly to the lessening of purchases by fertilizer companies. As a matter of fact, fertilizer companies are one of the major customers of Raffia bags in India, and the purchase pattern impacts the demand pattern for the HDPE(Raffia) material eventually.