The cold snap that shut down oil fields and refineries across Texas last month has severely impacted several petrochemical plants caused a global shortage of plastics, according to WSJ. Plastics produced on the Gulf Coast are essential for carmaking, medical devices, homebuilding, and consumables.
Prices for polyethylene, polypropylene, and other plastics used to make automobiles, computers, and pipes have reached their highest prices in years due to the shortages produced by the shuttering of petrochemical plants across Texas and other Gulf Coast states due to cold weather in February.
On top of a shortage of almost everything and soaring prices, as we explained days ago, wide-scale supply chain pains are expected throughout 2021.
WSJ reports Honda Motor Co. will halt some of its U.S. and Canadian automobile factories this week due to supply chain issues from the winter storm last month.
Toyota Motor Corp. expects the shortage of petrochemicals to hurt production at its car plants. Paint maker PPG Industries Inc. said a number of its suppliers had been affected by the plastic shortage. Storage and shelving retailer, Container Store Group Inc., warned that the plastic shortage could impact profit margins.
John Schiegg, vice president of supply-chain services for David Weekley Homes, a Houston-based homebuilder, said a shortage of everything from siding to adhesives to insulation is quickly materializing – this could easily delay homebuilding projects, or in the meantime, result in higher costs.- READ MORE
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