Instructions: Indicate a text span in the passage about which an inquisitive question is asked. (note, don't answer the question).
Input: Sentence: The industry is " seeing a softening somewhat in volume and certainly in price in petrochemicals , " Glenn Cox , president of Phillips Petroleum Co . , said in an interview . " That change will obviously impact third and fourth quarter earnings " for the industry in general , he added .<sep>Question: what does softening mean?
Output:
softening