On March 5, BASF found itself unable to meet the amount of material needed to meet market demand due to unforeseen complications affecting its polyamide production business, according to a number of ** reports by Chemanalyst, a global petrochemical information platform. In response to this inevitable situation, BASF had to declare force majeure on its low-viscosity polyamide productsand implement sales distribution measures in North America, effective immediately. 
Currently, BASF declares the duration of force majeureand the resulting distribution of salesStill uncertain。BASF's account managers will communicate with customers to provide updates on current and future orders and ensure transparency when circumstances change. It is important to note that due to the variability of market conditions, sales allocations and delivery schedules are subject to change.
The company is actively pursuing all reasonable avenues to identify mitigation strategies to address the challenges encountered in the ** chain. Polyamide is an important ingredient used in the production of carpet fibers, underscoring the importance of BASF's efforts to address these operational disruptions.
Price increases in North America
On February 13, BASF announced an increase in caprolactam, polyamide polymers and copolyamides in North America: Effective March 1, 2024, or where contractually permitted, BASF will increase caprolactam, polyamide 6 (PA6) and copolyamide (PA6 66) in North America by 0$20. 
Previously, nylon giant Ascend had announced a price increase: four times in half a year! The nylon 66 giants announced a price increase!
Oversupply?
From the perspective of the global market, PA6 and PA66 account for more than 95% of the total production capacity and output. The domestic PA6 production capacity has grown rapidly in the past ten years because the raw material caprolactam has been localized.
According to IHS and Baichuan Yingfu, the overseas PA6 PA66 production in 2020 was about 3452.47 million tons, while the domestic PA6 PA66 production was 386 340,000 tons, respectively.
Nylon 6 industry chain.
Structure determines performance. Because the molecular chain arrangement structure of PA66 is different from that of PA6, the two have different properties. Under similar process conditions, PA66 is more crystalline and more orderly than PA6, so PA66 has a higher melting point (its melting point is 40°C higher than PA6), slower permeability, and stronger resistance to deformation. According to IHS, 80% of the downstream of PA6 is used in the field of civil textiles, while PA66 is close to more than 60% of the field of engineering plastics. 
The difference in the nature of the two In 2023, the average price of PA6 in China will be the same as that of the same period last year, but the market will heat up in the second half of the year. Looking forward to 2024, the cost may be high, and the continued economic recovery is expected to drive the increase in demand, and the PA6 market may be consolidated. ButIn 2024, the new production capacity of PA6 will be concentrated, and the growth rate will be faster, or the contradiction between supply and demand will be exacerbated to a certain extent, thereby inhibiting the increase in the first place.
It should be noted that the production plan is only a tentative plan of the enterprise, and under the influence of many factors such as the future market, project progress, and the actual situation of raw materials in China, there is the possibility of adjustment of the new plan at any time.