About two weeks after the start of the Iran war, Dow Chief Executive Jim Fitterling told investors that polyethylene prices would be increasing due to the conflict's geopolitical ripples.
The Iran war has brought a lucrative reversal of fortune to U.S.-based chemical makers, which have seen their share prices rocket up as Middle Eastern producers cut production and plastic makers in Asia and Europe curbed their output.
Heavy demand is prompting Dow to run some facilities at close to full capacity, with the company's share price up 77% so far this year after two years of decline.
Fellow chemical maker LyondellBasell is also enjoying a similar ride, with its stock up 84% so far this year after two years of decline.
Other U.S. commodity producers are sharing in the boom, but companies that buy those commodities are on the flip side, with packaging manufacturers Amcor and Magnera seeing sharp declines in their share prices.
Analysts say an end to the conflict in Iran won't immediately erase U.S. chemical producers' edge, and that it could take eight or nine months for shipping and chemical plants in the Persian Gulf to get back to normal.
