Tungsten Market Rises with Long-Term Contract Price Increases, Pre-Holiday Market Sees Shrinking Volume and Rising Prices [SMM Tungsten Daily Review]

SMM February 10 news

Today, tungsten product prices generally maintained an upward trend. Due to reasons such as mine production cuts approaching the Chinese New Year and stricter control on tax-exclusive transactions, circulation in the tungsten ore market was scarce, driving a significant increase in transaction prices. Last Friday, an enterprise in Luoyang auctioned and sold 25% tungsten concentrate, with transaction prices concentrated at 10,155-10,160 yuan/mtu. Other mines had limited shipments before the holiday. Today, a tungsten company in Guangdong released long-term contract price guidance, with the 55% ore long-term contract price raised by 135,000 yuan/mtu MoM, and the APT price raised by 200,000 yuan/mt MoM, further strengthening market bullish sentiment. However, as the Chinese New Year holiday approaches, overall market transactions have shrunk, logistics are gradually halting, some suppliers are liquidating positions for profits before the holiday, and downstream demand is in the off-season, with procurement mainly for essential restocking.

Ore end: As of February 10, SMM black tungsten concentrate (65%) closed at 694,000-695,000 yuan/mtu, up 14,000 yuan/mtu from the previous trading day. Recently, mines in Henan, Guangdong, etc., have conducted tenders for shipments. Some mines have already entered the winding-down phase before the holiday, with very few shipments. Coupled with the gradual halt in logistics, spot order transactions in the ore market were scarce this week, with negotiations mostly following APT market transaction prices.

Ammonium paratungstate (APT): As of February 10, SMM ammonium paratungstate (≥88.5%) was quoted at 1.00-1.03 million yuan/mt, up 15,000 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. The industry primarily operates on order-based delivery. Some downstream enterprises have increased stocking demand before the holiday, conducting essential restocking. With suppliers maintaining a bullish outlook, offers remain firm. Given limited increases in APT industry operating rates, downstream buyers have weak bargaining power and mostly accept orders based on manufacturer quotes. European market: As of last Friday, the ammonium paratungstate (APT) CIF Rotterdam port price was $1,450-15,500 per mtu. Overseas spot order circulation was also relatively scarce, with supplier offers mostly following the upward trend in the Chinese market. Some APT prices prepared from tungsten scrap alloys were quoted slightly lower.

Powder end: As of February 10, tungsten carbide closed at 1,640-1,660 yuan/kg, up 30 yuan/kg from the previous trading day. Tungsten powder prices were concentrated at 1,690-1,710 yuan/kg, up 20 yuan/kg from the previous trading day. With powder enterprises relatively saturated with orders and high raw material costs, enterprise offers remain firm, and the industry processing fee shows a widening trend.

Ferrotungsten: The ferrotungsten market saw limited transactions, with strong wait-and-see sentiment among downstream special steel enterprises. Some steel mills have turned to purchasing tungsten-containing scrap with higher tungsten content to reduce costs. Ferrotungsten enterprises face significant cost pressure, and the industry mainly follows the upward trend. Today, the mainstream quotation for 80% ferrotungsten was concentrated at 970,000 yuan/mt, up 20,000 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. The European ferrotungsten marketaverage price was $177 per kg W. The domestic ferrotungsten FOB quotation has already exceeded $190 per kg W, creating an inverted export situation that restricts some enterprises' overseas order transactions..

Short term, the tungsten market gradually entered a holiday state in the final pre-holiday week, with trading volume shrinking. However, given that the tight raw material supply situation is unlikely to improve in the short term, the tungsten market remains more likely to rise than fall. The scrap tungsten market entered the holiday state ahead of the holiday, with both recycling volume and trading volume declining significantly, further exacerbating the tight raw material supply for smelters. Post-holiday, the entire industry chain will face restocking demand. However, with the Two Sessions approaching after the holiday, mine operating rates are still not expected to see significant growth, and the supply-demand imbalance may persist as downstream operations resume production. Medium and long-term, limited global tungsten mine increments coupled with stricter domestic control policies, while tungsten applications in military and new energy downstream sectors continue to grow, support tungsten prices to remain relatively strong due to tight supply and demand.