According to SMM's survey of major sodium antimonate producers nationwide, China's first-grade sodium antimonate production in November 2024 decreased by 5.23% MoM compared to October. After the production decline in September, production fell again in November, mainly due to significant production declines at several enterprises. In terms of other detailed data, among SMM's 11 surveyed enterprises, two were in a state of production halt or adjustment in November, while most other sodium antimonate producers maintained stable production, with a few enterprises experiencing slight production increases, leading to an overall production decline.
According to market participants, from the perspective of the current fundamentals, the domestic PV glass production has been continuously declining since July, with October's production still underperforming, and daily melting capacity has returned to around 80,000 mt. There is a possibility that November's production will further decline, with some market participants suggesting that daily melting capacity could fall to the 70,000 mt level. This would significantly impact the consumption of glass clarifiers such as sodium antimonate. Many market participants believe that overall domestic antimony demand will decline in the short term. Particularly, if PV glass production maintains its current state, the demand for antimony metal from PV glass could decrease by about 35%. Additionally, many manufacturers aim to reduce inventory and liquidate assets before the Chinese New Year, which are all bearish factors. SMM expects that the production of first-grade sodium antimonate in China will likely remain stable in December, but some market participants believe that production could still decline further.
Note: Since July 2023, SMM has been publishing the national production of sodium antimonate. Thanks to SMM's high coverage rate in the antimony industry, SMM's survey includes 11 sodium antimonate producers across 5 provinces, with a total sample capacity exceeding 75,000 mt, covering 99% of the total capacity.
