Japanese refiner Idemitsu Kosan said on Tuesday it shut the naphtha cracker at its Chiba plant, east of Tokyo, on Sunday for maintenance, a little earlier than its original plan.
The cracker will be restarted in mid-May after major scheduled maintenance, a spokeswoman said.
The company had said last November that the cracker would be shut in April-May.
Novo Nordisk announced a global workforce reduction of approximately 9,000 positions to streamline operations and reinvest DKK 8 billion (€1 billion) in growth opportunities for diabetes and obesity treatments.
Carbon black manufacturer Orion Engineered Carbons plans to rationalize production lines in North and South America and EMEA.
The German Chemical Industry Association (VCI) welcomes the fact that Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, and US President Donald Trump have averted the danger of a trade war for the time being.
Building on the April 2025 announcement, Dow will take actions across its three operating segments to support European profitability, resulting in the closure of sites in Germany and the UK.
