Soaring U.S. Methanol Play Sees Market Cap Plummet by 370 Billion Won in a Day

Methanex Corporation (NASDAQ: MEOH) closed at $47.21 on the 24th, down 7.7%, erasing about $260 million in market value—roughly KRW 370 billion—and leaving its market capitalization at approximately $3.65 billion (around KRW 5.1 trillion). Trading volume topped 1.05 million shares, above recent averages, suggesting concentrated profit-taking on this year’s sharp rally.

No material new filings were reported intraday or at market close. Just last week, an analysis noted that the stock had surged roughly 48% year-to-date on the back of strong methanol prices, raising valuation concerns. In its first-quarter results, Methanex achieved an average realized methanol price of $351 per metric ton. Last year, the company expanded its Texas production base by acquiring OCI’s U.S. methanol operations, and in March, OCI completed its exit by selling its remaining 4.3% stake in an off-exchange block trade.

Headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, Methanex is the world’s largest methanol producer, with production and supply networks across North and South America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region, commanding the highest share of the global methanol market. Methanol serves as both a fuel for internal combustion engines and marine vessels and as a petrochemical feedstock, while also being recognized as a lower-carbon alternative fuel—making Methanex’s performance particularly sensitive to energy prices and shifts in clean-fuel demand.