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Middle East Chemicals Keep Their Cost Edge Despite Hormuz Crisis

Despite the Iran war and the Hormuz crisis, the Middle East’s low-cost chemicals production is set to retain its long-term advantage over other regions. Near-term shifts in the sourcing of polymers are taking place due to the current constraints in the Persian Gulf’s industrial base, benefiting U.S. chemicals companies. But in the long run, the Middle East is likely to retain its buyers’ base because it still has the two levers to be competitive on the global market—an extensive production base and, most of all, low-cost…