AKRON—Figuring out how the market is trending when it comes to feedstocks and energy prices for the synthetic or natural rubber latex industry is anything but easy. That's why so few do it well.
Bill Hyde has had more success with his crystal ball than most of his counterparts. The senior director of olefins and elastomers for IHS Chemical Inc. admitted that making predictions in his area of expertise is far from an exact science.
“The problem with forecasting energy prices, especially in the short term, is that they are often disconnected from actual market fundamentals,” he said. “The "market sentiment' is often influenced more by current events than supply and demand.”
Hyde also noted IHS has a large team that follows energy and economic trends, and that “gives us a view of the markets that I don't think many firms share.”
During his presentation “Synthetic Latex Feedstock Trends: Will Oil Price Turmoil Rock the Boat or Is It Full Speed Ahead?” at the International Latex Conference, Aug. 11-12 in Fairlawn, Ohio, and in a later interview, he tackled trends in both the energy and petrochemical sectors.