recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, rising energy prices from energy-control policies in China and Europe forced factories in these regions to cut their production at certain times. As a result, PP prices rose and created volatility in the PP market. The price of PP film in Southeast Asia in 2021 stood at US$ 1,321 per ton, increasing from 2020 by US$ 329 per ton on average. The PP over naphtha spread in 2021 was US$ 675 per ton, climbing by US$ 63 per ton from 2020. The purified terephthalic acid (PTA) market slightly strengthened relative to 2020. The regional demand in Asia increased 7.2% after the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. However, the additional capacity, especially from China, consistently entered the marker, causing the price of PTA products in average climbed to US$ 668 per ton, an increase of more than US$ 199 per ton compared to 2021. The polyethylene terephthalate (PET) market in 2021 was better than in 2020, with the demand for PET products increased by 3.9% compared to 2020, or 1 million tons, rising to 26 million tons. The COVID-19 pandemic is relatively limited for PET products as it is a packaging that is critical to the hygiene of food and beverages. At the same time, PET capacity increased 2.1% year-on-year, or 0.7 million tons, to 34 million tons, mainly from capacity expansion in the first half of Chinese manufacturers. As a result, the price of PET products in 2021 increased with rising petrochemical raw material prices due to the increasing demand for crude oil. Moreover, product supply was tight due to the Polar Vortex phenomenon in North America. In the late Q3, the Chinese government announced Dual Control Energy Policy measures, resulting in reduced production capacity averaging at US$ 972 per ton, an increase of US$ 265 per ton compared to 2020. The PET over feedstock spread (P2F) climbed to US$ 168 per ton, an increase of US$ 23 per ton. The polystyrene (PS) market was fairly stabilized in 2021. The global demand climbed by 0.3 million tons, or 3.6%, from 11.3 million tons in 2019 to 10.7 million tons. The packaging products still had ongoing demand. This was mainly due to the changing behavior of end consumers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, the production capacity of electrical and electronic products at the beginning of the second quarter slowed down but tended to improve in the third quarter onwards due to the postponement of production from the second quarter, resulting in the overall price of PS products increased throughout 2021. The production capacity of PS products increased by 0.2 million tons to 14.0 million tons or 1.4%, resulting in the average price of PS products in Southeast Asia in 2021 at approximately US$ 1,469 per ton for GPPS product group and US$ 1,764 per ton for HIPS product group, representing an increase of approximately US$ 427 and US$ 594 per ton from 2020, respectively. The PS products over styrene monomers (SM) spread in 2021 stood at US$ 418 per ton, increasing from that of 2020 by about US$ 76 per ton. FORECAST FORTHEPOLYMERMARKET IN 2022 The PE market is expected to see the increasing demand of 5.3 million tons or 4.6%, from 115.3 million tons to 120.6 million tons. Due to the success in controlling the COVID-19 pandemic to support the recovery of the global economy, however, the shortage of ships and containers and the announcement of China’s Dual Control Energy Policy may not be resolved in a short time. They will continue to be the main factor affecting the PE market situation continuously throughout 2022, including the expectation of new production volumes from China, India, the United States, and the Southeast Asian countries into the market about 9.7 million tons. As a result of these factors, the PE price is expected to slightly decline relative to 2021. The PP market is expected to suffer pressure from new additional capacity in China and Southeast Asia, while regional demand will likely improve as a result of the recovery of the COVID-19 pandemic. The PTA market is expected to remain stabilized as a result of economic recovery. However, the market is projected the weakening in the second half of the year as a result of additional capacity of approximately 8-9 million tons. The global demand in PET market is expected to be 27 million tons, a million ton increase from 2021, while the capacity is projected to see 2 million tons increase, mainly from China. Thus, the combined capacity in 2022 will be 36 million tons. PET will still remain vital as everyday food and beverage packaging, showing the signs of relatively stabilized market similar to 2021. The global PS market is expected to see the rise of global demand by 0.17 million tons to 11.5 million tons per year, as well as the additional capacity of 2.2 million tons per year from China to 14 million tons per year in 2021. Thus, the PS market is projected to remain stabilized compared to the previous year. 65 BUSINESS OPERATION AND PERFORMANCE CORPORATE GOVERNANCE FINANCIAL REPORTS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS APPENDIX
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