The 2026 US Iran conflict indirectly drives up the price of polyurethane buffer blocks

2026 Since the beginning of this year, the continuous escalation of the conflict between the United States and Iran is passing cost pressures to the terminal manufacturing industry through the transmission effect of the global petrochemical industry chain. Among them, Polyurethane buffer blockSuch seemingly niche industrial accessories cannot escape the fate of rising prices.

The core impact of this geopolitical conflict is the obstruction of shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. As a transportation channel for 20% of the world's oil and a large amount of liquefied natural gas, tensions in the strait directly pushed up crude oil prices, soaring from US$67 per barrel at the end of February to more than US$98 in late March, an increase of more than 46%. As the "blood" of the plastics industry, crude oil's price rise quickly triggers a chain reaction: Polyethylene ( PE）、 Polypropylene ( PP） As basic resin prices hit a four-year high, Asian markets PE The spot price increased by 18% in just one month, reaching 9,800 yuan per ton. Polyurethane buffer blockAlthough not directly used in the production of PE or PP， But as a member of the petroleum derivatives family, its core raw material polyurethane ( PU） The production is also highly dependent on the petrochemical industry chain. Polyurethane is polymerized from isocyanates and polyols, two key intermediates that are based on petroleum extracts.

As crude oil prices rise, isocyanates such as MDI、TDI） The production costs of polyols and polyols have increased significantly, directly driving the price of polyurethane raw materials to rise by about 22%. For downstream manufacturing, this pressure of rising costs is particularly significant. Taking polyurethane buffer blocks widely used in automobile, electronics, construction and other industries as an example, raw materials account for more than 70% of its production costs.

According to some domestic auto parts suppliers, the purchase price of polyurethane buffer blocks has increased by 15%-20% since March, and the supply cycle has been extended from the original 15 days to more than 30 days. Since this type of buffer block is a customized product, it is difficult to find alternative materials in a short time, and companies can only passively accept price increases. What is more noteworthy is that the uncertainty of the supply chain has further exacerbated market panic. As an important supplier of global polyurethane raw materials, the Middle East accounts for about 30% of the world's production capacity. After the conflict broke out, some petrochemical plants were forced to operate at reduced load, resulting in a gap in the supply of raw materials. A European chemical company said that the delayed delivery rate of its polyol orders imported from the Middle East has exceeded 40%, and it has to turn to the United States and other places to purchase alternative sources. This not only increases transportation costs, but also further pushes up raw material prices. Although the United States and Iran recently announced a two-week ceasefire and international oil prices have fallen, the industry generally believes that the recovery of the supply chain will still take time.

The prices of end products such as polyurethane buffer blocks are difficult to adjust in the short term, and related manufacturing companies will face continued cost pressure. This conflict in the Middle East is affecting every aspect of global industrial manufacturing in an invisible way.