Asia top stories – weekly summary

SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Here are the top stories from ICIS News Asia and the Middle East for the week ended 16 May 2025.

APIC ’25: INSIGHT: Asia petrochemical industry facing “unprecedented crisis”
BANGKOK (ICIS)–Asia’s petrochemical industry leaders are navigating a complex global landscape marked by unprecedented challenges, with a renewed focus on sustainability, innovation, and regional collaboration, industry leaders said on Friday.

APIC ’25: INSIGHT: Thai petrochemical sector contends with low-cost overseas rivals
BANGKOK (ICIS)–External factors continue to pressure Thailand’s petrochemical industry, driven by new capacity additions from low-cost producers, particularly those in the Middle East, according to a report by the Federation of Thai Industries, Petrochemical Industry Club (FTIPC).

INSIGHT: US propane poised for China return on sharp cuts in bilateral tariffs
SINGAPORE (ICIS)–High-level trade talks between the US and China on 12 May have yielded significant reduction in the level of newly imposed tariffs by both sides, boding well for operating rates at Chinese propane dehydrogenation (PDH) plants.

ICIS China April petrochemical price index slumps on tariff war
SINGAPORE (ICIS)–The ICIS China Petrochemical Price Index declined by an average of 5.6% in April from the previous month as the trade war with the US raged on and weighed heavily on Chinese exports and domestic demand

China, US agree to lower tariffs by 14 May for 90 days
SINGAPORE (ICIS)–The US and China have agreed to de-escalate trade war with sharp cuts on tariffs by 14 May 2025, for an initial period of three months, according to a joint statement issued on Monday by the world’s two biggest economies.

Saudi Aramco Q1 net income falls 4.6% on high cost, low crude prices
SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Saudi Aramco’s first-quarter net income fell by 4.6% year on year to Saudi riyal (SR) 97.5 billion ($26 billion), weighed down by a combination of higher cost and lower oil prices.