Global price of propylene 2017-2023

The average price of propylene amounted to some 865 U.S. dollars per metric ton in 2023, down from 865 dollars per metric ton one year earlier.

Production and uses of propylene

Propylene, also known as propene, ranks as the second most-consumed primary petrochemical worldwide, only after ethylene. In 2022, propylene accounted for 22 percent of the global primary petrochemical consumption. Most of the propylene produced is used to manufacture polypropylene, one of the most common thermoplastic materials used today. The petrochemical compound is also used extensively as a building block to produce diverse chemicals such as isopropyl alcohol, propylene oxide, acrylonitrile, and acrylic acid. In 2020, the global production capacity of propylene stood at 133 million metric tons.

Polypropylene market

The market volume of polypropylene is forecast to follow an increasing trend during the next years, reaching approximately 100 million metric tons by 2029. Similarly, the market value of the compound is expected to increase by more than 30 percent in 2029 in comparison with 2021. Similarly to the development of the price of propylene during the last year, the average price of polypropylene in 2023 showed a small decrease in comparison with 2022.