ICIS Americas Deputy News Editor Al Greenwood previews the 2015 Feiplastic conference in Sao Paulo, Brazil with reporter Dustin Hall.

The annual plastics conference comes at a difficult time for Brazil, which is facing significant economic challenges as well as a severe drought. Greenwood exmaines the factors behind the country’s recent struggles and shares what to expect from this year’s conference.

ICIS Americas Senior Editor Ron Coifman discussed the outlook for Latin America polyvinyl chloride (PVC) with reporter Dustin Hall.

Two joint venture projects are expected to ease supply of feedstock vinyl chloride monomer (VCM), particularly in Mexico. Coifman details these projects and explains the outlook for PVC in Latin America as a whole in light of the volatility in crude oil.

ICIS Americas Senior Editor Ignacio Sotolongo discusses Thursday’s jump in crude oil prices with podcast host Bobbie Clark.

Both West Texas Intermediate (WTI) and Brent traded at yearly highs on Thursday, driven largely by demand for refined products. Sotolongo explains the outlook for crude and the stumbling blocks that could bring prices down again.

ICIS Americas Senior Editor Lane Kelly discusses the strength of polyethylene with podcast host Bobbie Clark on Wednesday.

Year in and year out, polyethylene sales and margins are robust. This year is no exception, despite several consecutive months of contract price drops. Kelley explains the advantage US polyethylene sellers have over other petrochemical producers and why polypropylene producers would like to emulate them.

ICIS Americas crude oil expert Ignacio Sotolongo discusses the recent upswing in crude pricing with podcast host Bobbie Clark. Within the past 3 weeks, crude has reached both a yearly high and a yearly low. We take a look at the factors behind this volatility.

February was a murky month for the propylene market, particularly when it comes to refinery-grade propylene (RGP). Senior editor John Dietrich explains current market dynamics with podcast host Bobbie Clark.

Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen joins ICIS senior editor Bobbie Clark at the National Ethanol Conference in Grapevine, Texas for the latest ICIS Americas Podcast. They discuss the impact of falling gasoline prices on the ethanol industry, exports, cellulosic ethanol and the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).

ICIS Americas crude oil expert Ignacio Sotolongo discusses the current volatility in the crude oil market.

The fundamentals for the crude oil market remain bearish, yet prices have seen some sharp spikes.

Sotolongo explains this phenomenon and the factors that have caused it to podcast host Bobbie Clark.

US ethylene prices have been on a steep decline over the last few months.

In the latest ICIS Americas podcast, editors John Dietrich and Bobbie Clark discuss the reasons behind this recent slide, as well as the robust margins producers are still enjoying because of cheap feedstock natural gas liquids (NGLs).

Ignacio Sotolongo, who has covered the crude oil markets for 25 years, sits down with markets editor Bobbie Clark for another chat about the true reasons behind the slide in crude prices.