The disruptions are also rippling through Southeast Asia’s plastics industry, which depends on naphtha imported from the Middle East.
Naphtha, a petrochemical derived from crude oil, is widely used in the production of plastics found in everything from food packaging to personal protective equipment.
In Indonesia, entrepreneurs have even taken to social media, with parody TikTok videos showing products wrapped in banana leaves instead of plastic, jokingly calling it their “solution to rising plastic prices”.
Indonesia’s Industry Ministry said firms have also begun diversifying packaging materials, turning to paper, glass, metal and recycled plastics, reported the Jakarta Post.
The Malaysian Plastic Manufacturers Association (MPMA) told CNA that prices of polyethylene and polypropylene, both derived from naphtha, jumped by about 90 per cent in April, from around US$930 to US$1,700 per tonne.
“There are also severe shortages in the market for certain grades and some buyers can no longer buy from usual suppliers because local suppliers have declared force majeure, while others are limping,” said MPMA’s president CC Cheah.
Prices have since retreated from their peak, averaging about US$1,450 per tonne for common grades in June, according to MPMA.
The association said supply pressures began to ease in May as manufacturers turned to alternative international sources, particularly imports from China.
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