Monthly Archives: March 2021

Caustic soda prices rose overall in March

1、 Price trend

 

According to the monitoring data of business news agency, the overall price of caustic soda in March was the main actor. The average market price at the beginning of the month was about 457.5 yuan / ton, and the average market price at the end of the month was about 490 yuan / ton, with an increase of 7.1%, and a decrease of 9.68% compared with the same period last year. On March 29, the commodity index of caustic soda was 70.50, which was the same as yesterday. Compared with the highest point 206.87 in the cycle (November 14, 2017), it decreased by 65.92%, and increased by 8.28% compared with the lowest point 65.11 on October 9, 2020. (Note: period refers to the period from September 1, 2011 to now)

 

2、 Market analysis

 

In March, the price of caustic soda was the main factor. The reason for the rising price of caustic soda is that the factory has concentrated maintenance and the supply side is slightly tight. At present, the main stream of 32% caustic soda is 390-500 yuan / ton. In Hebei area, the market of caustic soda fluctuates in a narrow range. At present, the mainstream ex factory price of 32% caustic soda is 460-600 yuan / ton. Jiangsu market is about 550-650 yuan / ton, Guangdong market is about 640-650 yuan / ton. Data show that last week, the capacity of domestic caustic soda maintenance units involved 2.26 million tons, accounting for about 5% of the national caustic soda capacity. The increase in maintenance continued to support market fundamentals.

 

The market performance of liquid chlorine in the upstream of caustic soda is fair this week, and the demand in the downstream is supported. Generally speaking, it will be mainly operated in the later stage or strongly. From the downstream of caustic soda, after the festival, the terminal demand of alumina, papermaking and other industries improved slightly, and the demand for caustic soda increased, which boosted the low rebound of caustic soda price. However, the price of caustic soda is mainly a wait-and-see attitude, and both sides enter the game.

 

According to the price monitoring of the business community, in the 12th week of 2021 (3.22-3.26), there were 0 kinds of commodities rising, 3 kinds of commodities falling, and 2 kinds of commodities falling to 0. The main commodities falling were calcium carbide (- 8.91%), PVC (- 2.79%) and hydrochloric acid (- 2.44%). The average rise and fall this week was – 2.83%.

 

Business analysts believe that in the near future, the caustic soda enterprises are not warm in shipment, and the downstream receiving situation is weak and stable, with a strong wait-and-see atmosphere. The buyer and the seller play a price game, and it is expected that caustic soda will continue to fluctuate slightly in the future, depending on the downstream market demand.

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Isopropanol prices in China rose steadily this week (3.19-3.26)

1、 Price trend

 

Isopropanol prices rose this week, according to commodity data monitoring. The average price of isopropanol in China was 8966.67 yuan / ton last Friday and 9066.67 yuan / ton this Friday. The price rose by 1.12% in the week.

 

2、 Market analysis

 

Figure: price trend comparison of acetone and isopropanol from January to March

 

Isopropanol prices have been rising steadily this week. Internationally, isopropanol in the United States continued to rise on March 23, while isopropanol market in Europe continued to rise. So far, Shandong isopropanol negotiation range is about 8800-9100 yuan / ton, Jiangsu isopropanol negotiation range is about 9150-9300 yuan / ton. The negotiation range of isopropanol in Zhejiang is around 9100 yuan / ton.

 

In terms of raw material acetone, the domestic acetone market price rose slightly, reaching 8600-8700 yuan / ton. The main reason is that the news has a great influence. As soon as the news of the Middle East plant shutdown came out, the information of the cargo holders was boosted, and the market offer rose as a whole. As soon as the acetone market recovered, the terminal inquiry increased and the market negotiation temperature increased. On the other hand, crude oil rebounded, which was supported by macro economy.

 

In terms of raw material propylene, on March 25, the market price of propylene in Shandong declined individually. The current market turnover has dropped to 7800 ~ 8400 yuan / ton, and the mainstream price is about 7800 yuan / ton. U.S. propylene 18, 19, the external market dropped sharply, also has a certain impact on the domestic market. Propylene market is now no pressure inventory, part of the device is still in repair.

 

3、 Future forecast

 

Isopropanol analyst of chemical branch of business society thinks: at present, foreign export orders are relatively stable. As the market price of acetone rose slightly and the cost was under pressure, the operation rate of isopropanol by acetone method was low; the price of propylene fell and stabilized, which supported isopropanol to a certain extent, and the price increased slightly. From the perspective of sorting out, traders mainly wait and see, while downstream enterprises are more cautious in buying. It is expected that the market price of isopropanol will be stable temporarily in the short term.

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Shanghai lead fell 1.88% on March 25

Shanghai lead fell sharply in the morning of the 25th, and the main contract of Shanghai lead dropped 1.88% by the end of the day. The spot market price followed the downward trend. The quotation range of lead ingot in domestic spot lead market was about 14950-15050 yuan / ton, with an average price of 15000 yuan / ton, down 125 yuan / ton from the previous trading day.

 

Today, the spot market prices down, the lower reaches of the opportunity to bargain into the market, mainly small single transactions, the market as a whole partial wait-and-see. The downstream battery enterprises purchase on demand, and the transaction atmosphere is general. At present, the battery industry is still in the traditional off-season, and the demand for lead ingots is relatively stable. In the future, the demand for lead ingots is mainly weak without obvious large-scale downstream demand.

 

Relevant data:

 

ILZSG: 21800 tons of lead shortage in January

 

According to the data of the international lead research group, the global lead market was short of 21800 tons in January 2021, revised to oversupply of 11000 tons in December last year, and oversupply of 30500 tons in December. In January, the global output of lead ore was 366200 tons, the output of lead was 999400 tons, and the consumption of lead was 1021200 tons.

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March 24 urea price in Shandong rose 0.31%

Trade name: urea

 

Latest price (March 24): 2123.33 yuan / ton

 

On March 24, the ex factory quotation of urea in Shandong increased by 6.66 yuan / ton, or 0.31%, compared with the quotation on March 22. The upstream liquid ammonia has risen sharply recently, with good cost support. Demand side: agricultural demand is mainly sporadic procurement; downstream compound fertilizer, plastic plate plant start load increased slightly, most go with the market. Supply side: at present, the operating rate of urea enterprises is about 80%, and the daily output is about 160000 tons. The start-up load of urea enterprises is increased and the supply side is sufficient. International aspect: India’s RCF import bid was opened, with a total bid volume of 1.926 million tons, and the bid price was not announced. The nitrogen fertilizer plant with an annual output of 1.7 million tons of urea in India has exploded, and the medium scalar quantity may be improved. Even in April, the bidding was invited again, and the market mentality improved.

 

In the future, it is expected that the short-term urea market will fluctuate slightly and rise mainly: the average price quoted by manufacturers is about 2150 yuan / ton.

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March 23, chloroform prices fell sharply

Trade name: chloroform

 

Latest price (March 23): 3723 yuan / ton

 

Key points of analysis: according to the monitoring of business news agency, the domestic price of chloroform was 3723 yuan / ton on the 23rd, down 6.53% from the 22nd. Domestic chloroform supply pressure is not big. According to the business community, at present, Jinling Dongying plant is under maintenance, Jinmao is under shutdown, Luxi is under high load operation, and Dongyue is under 60% load operation. Recently, the prices of liquid chlorine and methanol have been lower, and the cost side is relatively short. According to the monitoring of the business agency, since March 15, the mainstream ex factory price of liquid chlorine for tank cars in Shandong has dropped from 1900 yuan / ton at the beginning of the week to 1500 yuan / ton at the end of the week; the price of methanol has dropped from 2427 yuan / ton on March 15 to 2327 yuan / ton on March 22, with an overall decline of 4.12%.

 

At present, there is little pressure on the supply side, but the cost side has a strong negative factor. In addition, the downstream procurement is slightly light, and the price of chloroform will be stable after a small decline in the later period.

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The price of Nickel rose slightly by 1.37% on March 22

1、 Trend analysis

 

According to nickel price monitoring of business association, nickel price rose slightly on the 22nd. Spot nickel price was 124583.33 yuan / ton, up 1.37% from 122900 yuan / ton on the previous trading day, down 2.77% from the beginning of the year, up 29.08% from the same period last year.

 

2、 Market analysis

 

Today, nickel prices rebounded slightly. Crude oil rose, rising by 1.47% in shock every other week. Philippine nickel output fell, London Metal Exchange (LME) 19 Lun nickel inventory reported 259974 metric tons, compared with the previous trading day inventory decreased 234 metric tons. Downstream domestic stainless steel inventory is not much, the recent transaction is good, nickel price is supported. Previously, affected by the high nickel matte incident, nickel prices have been mainly low and narrow range fluctuations after a sharp fall. Affected by the rainy season in the Philippines, the prices have been supported. However, the rainy season in the Philippines is coming to an end, and the supply is expected to increase. It is hard to say that nickel prices will continue to rise. However, it is the peak season of construction, and there will still be support for nickel prices. Nickel prices are expected to remain in the range of 120000-130000.

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Active carbon market transaction is rare and price is weak

According to the monitoring of business news agency, the price of activated carbon was 10000 yuan / ton at the beginning of this week and 9966 yuan / ton at the end of this week, with a drop of 0.33%.

 

The domestic price of activated carbon is stable. At present, the ex factory price of activated carbon for coconut shell water purification in East China is about 6500-12000 yuan / ton; the domestic market of activated carbon is lack of good news support, and the quotation is weak.

 

The raw materials of activated carbon are rich, including coal, sawdust, fruit shell, straw, etc.

 

Forecast: in the short term, the price of activated carbon will be dominated by weak consolidation, the transaction atmosphere needs to be restored, the long-term market still needs to wait and see, and the overall price adjustment is not large.

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Methanol market price keeps falling

The downstream demand is weak. In the recent week, the domestic methanol market has been “falling continuously”. According to the monitoring of the business agency, the domestic methanol market price was 2462 yuan / ton on March 10, and 2327 yuan / ton on March 19, with a decrease of 5.48% in the cycle. The price increased by 2.87% on a month on month basis, up 30.76% on a year-on-year basis. At present, the mentality of the industry is acceptable, and there are great expectations for the spring inspection to pull up the market. Benefited from the recent “fourteenth five year” energy consumption double control task target issued by many provinces in China, the new methanol production capacity is facing compression in the future. Under the background of limited domestic methanol capacity expansion and approaching annual spring inspection, methanol price will start a round of medium-term rising market.

 

Summary of methanol market prices by Region as of March 19:

 

Region, price

Qinghai Area/

RMB 1950-1960 / T in Shanxi

Liaoning Province: 2180 yuan / ton

Fujian Province: 2530-2550 yuan / ton

Ex factory reference 2350-2400 yuan / ton in Lianghu area

Anhui area: 2270-2300 yuan / ton

Henan Province: 2170 yuan / ton ex factory reference

In the downstream, the formaldehyde market rose and fell this week, with slightly different buying and selling atmosphere in different regions. On Tuesday, the methyl ether market fell back after rising, and the market transaction atmosphere was general. This week, the domestic acetic acid market fell regionally, the East China and South China markets declined, and the North China market was temporarily stable.

 

In the external market, as of March 18, the closing price of CFR China methanol was 297.00-298.00 US dollars / ton, down 3 US dollars / ton; CFR Southeast Asia methanol was 369.50-370.50 US dollars / ton. US Gulf methanol closed at 118.00-119.00 cents per gallon, while FOB Rotterdam methanol closed at 318.00-319.00 euros per ton, down 1 euro per ton.

 

Region, country, closing price, up and down

US $297.00-298.00/t – US $3 / T

50-370.50 U.S. dollars / ton ﹣ 0 U.S. dollars / ton

Europe and America ﹣ US Gulf ﹣ 118.00-119.00 cents / gal – 1.5 cents / gal

Europe – FOB Rotterdam – 318.00-319.00 euro / ton – 1 euro / ton

In the future, on the supply side, as the spring overhaul is approaching, the overhaul plans of methanol enterprises in the mainland are coming out one after another; some downstream units are recovering one after another, and the demand for methanol is rising slowly. Business community methanol analysts expect that the domestic methanol market in the short term consolidation.

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Rare earth prices rise again

It can be seen from the trend chart that the domestic price of Dy 2O 3 rose again, and the market price was at a high level. As of March 18, the price of Dy 2O 3 was 2.955 million yuan / ton; the price of Dy ferroalloy was 2.94million yuan / ton, the price of Dy Metal was 3.55 million yuan / ton, and the domestic price of terbium was even higher. On March 18, the domestic price of terbium oxide was 9.9 million yuan / ton, and the price of metal terbium was 12.45 million yuan / ton.

 

The sharp contradiction between supply and demand is the main reason for the sharp rise of domestic heavy rare earth market price.

 

On the supply side: Myanmar still forbids exports, and the global supply of rare earth is relatively concentrated. Myanmar is one of the production areas next only to China and the United States. Myanmar has a great influence on the domestic heavy rare earth market products. The import source has decreased significantly. The sharp contradiction between supply and demand in the domestic heavy rare earth market has led to the high price of heavy rare earth. In February 2021, the opinions of the State Council on supporting the revitalization and development of old revolutionary base areas in the new era proposed to promote the construction of “China’s rare earth Valley” and study the policies for the purchase and storage of medium and heavy rare earth and tungsten resources, Medium and heavy rare earths account for a large proportion of annual output in the purchase and storage plan, which is expected to have a greater impact on the supply and demand and price of medium and heavy rare earths.

 

Demand: the downstream demand is expanding, and the demand for permanent magnet has remained high recently. New energy vehicles have been on fire from 2020 to 2021. According to the insiders, the rare earth gap is likely to continue throughout 2021. The main rare earth raw materials of high performance NdFeB are light rare earth praseodymium neodymium oxide, heavy rare earth dysprosium oxide and terbium oxide, which are used in new energy vehicles, wind power, energy-saving frequency conversion air conditioning, traditional vehicles and other fields. According to statistics, new energy vehicles continue to break the historical record of single month sales. According to the data released by China Automobile Industry Association, in February, the production and sales of new energy vehicles were 124000 and 110000 respectively, with a year-on-year growth of 7.2 times and 5.8 times respectively. This month, the production and sales of new energy vehicles have set a new historical record for eight consecutive months. Downstream demand rose, it is said that the demand gap has been increasing. Due to the tight supply of terbium series market and the imbalance between supply and demand, the market price of terbium series has remained at a high level.

 

According to the monitoring of business society, the price index of domestic rare earth market rose. According to the rare earth plate index of business society, on March 17, the rare earth index was 564 points, up 1 point compared with yesterday, down 43.60% compared with the highest point of 1000 points in the cycle (2011-12-06), and up 108.12% compared with the lowest point of 271 points on September 13, 2015. (Note: period refers to 2011-12-01 to now).

 

The domestic rare earth index began to rise in November 2020. In the past four months, the rare earth index of the business community has gone up by about 200 points, and the price increase of domestic light rare earth market is also quite amazing. Domestic sales of new energy vehicles have increased, and terminal industries such as wind power and electronic products have developed rapidly. As the epidemic situation slows down, the capacity utilization rate of downstream manufacturers continues, and demand is mainly based on demand procurement. The demand for NdFeB is still high. The high prosperity of new energy vehicles and consumer electronics industry also promotes the rise of rare earth prices. According to the data, the global demand for high-performance NdFeB is mainly concentrated in the automotive sector (nearly 40% for traditional vehicles and 12% for new energy vehicles), while the rest, such as wind power, consumer electronics, variable frequency air conditioning and energy-saving electrical appliances, account for 8% – 10%. The downstream demand rose, and the domestic rare earth market price rose again.

 

In 2021, the first batch of rare earth mining, smelting and separation total amount control indicators increased significantly, which is related to the strong downstream demand. The Ministry of natural resources issued the total amount control indicators of rare earth mining in 2021. In 2021, the total amount control indicators of the first batch of rare earth mining (rare earth oxide REO, the same below) in China were 84000 tons, including 11490 tons of ionic (mainly medium and heavy rare earth) rare earth ore and 11490 tons of rock ore The index of type (light) rare earth ore is 72510 tons. The first batch of tungsten concentrate (tungsten trioxide content 65%, the same below) has a total mining control index of 63000 tons, of which the main mining index is 46890 tons and the comprehensive utilization index is 16110 tons. In 2021, the total amount of rare earth and tungsten mining will continue to be controlled. The state policy is favorable, and the market price of rare earth will continue to rise.

 

With the continuous volume of new energy vehicles, wind power and variable frequency air conditioning in the downstream of rare earth, the demand for rare earth will continue to increase, which is expected to drive the further growth of demand. The global supply gap of rare earth is expected to continue to expand, the domestic demand for rare earth will remain high, the domestic supply of rare earth is still tight, and the contradiction between supply and demand in the rare earth market will be sharp. Business analyst Chen Ling expects the rare earth market in the future Prices may continue to rise.

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The price rise of lithium carbonate is flat and the high-level finishing state is in the short term

According to the data of business agency, the price of lithium carbonate has been gradually easing in recent two weeks, and the increase rate has begun to decrease. On March 17, the average price of industrial lithium carbonate in East China was 85200 yuan / ton, which was 0.71% higher than that of the early Zhou Dynasty (on March 14, the average price of industrial lithium carbonate in East China was 84600 yuan / ton). On March 17, the average price of battery grade lithium carbonate in East China was 89600 yuan / ton, which was 0.22% higher than that of the early Zhou Dynasty (on March 14, the average price of battery grade lithium carbonate in East China was 89400 yuan / ton). On July 17, the comprehensive quotation of industrial lithium carbonate market was around 800000-86000 yuan / ton, and the comprehensive price of battery grade lithium carbonate market was 85000-92000 yuan / ton.

 

From the observation of market changes, the price of lithium carbonate has shown a slight increase trend this week, while the rising trend of lithium carbonate price in recent two weeks is also slowing down and the increase rate has decreased. In early June, due to the insufficient commencement rate in Jiangxi and the recovery of downstream demand, the price of lithium carbonate increased continuously, and some enterprises were in a state of price discount and low sales. In recent years, the downstream raw material end of the market is fully stocked, and the trading volume of lithium carbonate is gradually reduced. Therefore, the market is in a clear wait-and-see mood. In addition, the output of mica and salt lake has begun to recover, and the price trend begins to stabilize. /p>

 

The price of lithium hydroxide in the downstream increased, the market was tight spot, and downstream enterprises actively inquired, the intention of low price delivery was not strong, and the price center moved upward. In the aspect of lithium iron phosphate power market, the price is rising and demand is rising. At present, with the rising of lithium salt price, the downstream sign long list more, and the market still has upward space.

 

According to the price monitoring of business agency, the commodity index of lithium carbonate on March 16 was 216.05, which was flat with yesterday, down 46.67% from the highest point 405.10 (January 07, 2018), up 119.25% from the lowest point of 98.54 on October 16, 2014. (Note: the period refers to 2011-09-01 to now)

 

Analysts at lithium carbonate, a business agency, believe that market demand has gradually stabilized in the near future. Some industry experts say that the current price rise is not enough. If there is no new positive trend in the market, the price may stop rising. It is expected that lithium carbonate prices will be in a high level in the short term.

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