Demand for Silicon Metal Raw Materials Continues to Rise, Petroleum Coke Price Center Will Drift Lower [SMM Silicon Metal Raw Material Weekly Review]

Silica: This week, silica market prices remained largely stable. Supply side, some producing regions were affected by rainy weather, limiting the pace of mining and transportation and resulting in a slight tightening of local cargo supply. However, ample inventories accumulated earlier in the industry kept the overall supply base loose, and the short-term disruptions have yet to exert a notable impact on the broader market. Demand side, as the southwest rainy season continued to advance, silicon metal plants resumed production, driving a MoM increase in overall silicon plant operating rates. Consequently, restocking demand from silicon plants for raw material silica improved marginally, supporting a modest improvement in just-in-time procurement for silica. Nevertheless, sentiment for pushing for lower prices remained strong among silicon plant buyers, which prompted silica's upside room.

Silicon Coal: This week, silicon coal market prices remained stable. Specifically, silicon granule coal in Gansu was quoted at 1,140 yuan/mt, and silicon mixed coal at 1,060 yuan/mt; silicon granule coal in Inner Mongolia and Ningxia was at 1,340 yuan/mt; Xinjiang non-caking silicon coal was at 855 yuan/mt; and Xinjiang caking silicon coal was at 1,400 yuan/mt. Supply side, the silicon coal market exhibited a clear divergence pattern: driven by production resumptions at silicon metal enterprises during the southwest rainy season, some coal processing plants that produce based on sales slightly raised their operating rates, with production schedules adjusting in tandem with downstream just-in-time procurement. Meanwhile, other plants that had experienced slowing shipments and accumulated high inventories focused primarily on destocking. Demand side, according to July production schedule statistics for silicon metal, silicon metal production increased MoM, and just-in-time procurement for silicon coal is therefore expected to edge up in tandem.

Petroleum Coke: This week, trading performance in China's petroleum coke market was mediocre. Sentiment for low-sulphur petroleum coke improved, with prices recovering slightly; mid- and high-sulphur petroleum coke saw sluggish downstream procurement, with prices consolidating lower. The overall market price center edged down slightly. Trading sentiment for Formosa Plastics petroleum coke was subdued, and port spot cargo offers were basically stable, with mainstream transaction prices holding at 1,300-1,350 yuan/mt. According to SMM monitoring, as of Thursday this week, the Shandong 4# petroleum coke price index was reported at 1,868.08 yuan/mt, down 2.14% WoW from last Thursday. Supply side, concentrated refinery maintenance in July was gradually winding down and resuming production, which, coupled with high port inventories, left the overall market supply relatively ample. Demand side, just-in-time procurement from the carbon used in aluminum production sector formed a bottom support, while purchasing enthusiasm from negative electrode material enterprises improved slightly. In the short term, market divergence across petroleum coke grades is expected to persist, with the overall market price center likely to drift lower.

Electrode: This week, prices of electrode used in silicon production continued to operate at low levels. Demand side, production resumptions at silicon metal plants during the southwest rainy season continued to advance, with overall operating rates likely to rise further in July, prompting a modest recovery in raw material procurement by silicon plants. However, the silicon metal market remained in a downturn, with silicon plants exhibiting a strong desire to bargain down prices. Supply side, electrode producers faced inventory pressure while contending with intense competition for shipments. Such a supply-demand dynamic is insufficient to support prices. Therefore, in the short term, electrode used in silicon production still lacks upward driving momentum and is expected to continue its low-level operating trend.

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