April has turned out as unfavourable period for acrylic staple fibre (ASF) producers, after witnessing boom times between January and March 2012.
In the first three months of 2012, ASF producers in Asia, particularly in Japan were operating their plants at full capacity, mainly due to demand from China.
Major Chinese ASF buyers who were holding a wait and watch attitude in the last quarter of 2011, started purchasing vigorously once prices started ascending, January onwards.
However, April the month in which ASF demand normally perks up saw a slowdown in demand mainly due to the demand fall from Europe.
Witnessing the hike in ASF prices in the first three months of 2012, final ASF product distributors placed their April to June orders earlier than usual, fearing that prices may rise further.
These two unrelated events have led to a slowdown in demand for ASF in April, not seen in earlier years.
Fibre2fashion News Desk - India