According to the SMM survey, China's actual production of antimony ingots (including antimony ingots, crude antimony conversion, antimony cathode, etc.) in July 2024 was 5,786.943 mt, a MoM decrease of 11.78% compared to June's 6,559.3 mt. Specifically, among the 33 surveyed producers, 11 had halted production, 3 fewer than last month; 19 showed reduced production, 4 more than last month; and 3 maintained normal production, 1 fewer than last month. From the perspective of antimony ingot production, July marked the first time in recent periods that production fell below 6,000 mt. However, many market participants believe that the actual decline in July's antimony ingot production was less than expected. Given the production plans from late June to early July, many producers had a pessimistic outlook on operating rates. This suggests that some producers might be depleting their raw material inventories, and competition for antimony raw materials will become increasingly fierce. Therefore, some market participants predict that the market for antimony raw materials will remain strong, but it is also possible that China's antimony production in August will continue to decline. SMM expects that the national antimony ingot production in August 2024 may still decrease compared to July, but stability cannot be ruled out.
Note: Since May 2022, SMM has been publishing the national production of antimony ingots (including antimony ingots, crude antimony conversion, antimony cathode, etc.). Thanks to SMM's high coverage rate in the antimony industry, the total number of surveyed antimony ingot producers is 33, distributed across 8 provinces nationwide, with a total sample production capacity exceeding 20,000 mt and a total capacity coverage rate of over 99%.
