As major oil companies released their first-quarter earnings, profits from their petrochemical units hit record highs and demand for petrochemicals is only set to grow. According to Bloomberg, this trend is worrying for consumers as construction and manufacturing staples such as PVC and ethylene have increased substantially in price due to pandemic-driven demand, supply disruptions, and the post-Covid economic recovery. There was a significant increase in demand for several products during the pandemic, most notably – packaging, medical goods, and protective equipment. As demand for PPE and other medical equipment, both for hospital and private use, looks set to continue for the rest of the year, demand in these areas is not expected to falter any time soon. This April, ExxonMobil Corp’s petrochemical unit announced Q1 profits of $1.4 billion , an increase of $1.271 billion on Q1 2020. This profit was partly due to market disruptions which led […]