Spot price remains stable, SiMn market watches with a weak sentiment [SMM SiMn Daily Review]

As of Wednesday this week, the northern market SiMn alloy 65/17 (cash) was at 5,700-5,800 yuan/mt, flat WoW; the southern market SiMn alloy 65/17 (cash) was at 5,750-5,850 yuan/mt, also flat WoW from last Wednesday.

Cost side: Recently, the manganese ore market has been consolidating with a weak bias, and market activity has declined. Manganese ore transaction prices have slightly decreased, leading to a small reduction in cost support, but the decline is limited. Currently, manganese ore and coke prices are at a relatively high level, and the cost support for SiMn alloy remains firm.

Supply side: The sentiment for factory operations in both the northern and southern markets is positive, with most factories focusing on short-term orders. Northern factories are actively stockpiling and producing, with little pressure to sell. Production in Guangxi and Yunnan is gradually increasing, showing good production enthusiasm. However, sentiment-wise, the recent macro tailwinds are cooling down, and the futures price of manganese silicon is fluctuating downward. As a result, factories are cautious about selling, and many SiMn producers are holding back from selling, leading to a weak and watchful market for SiMn.

Demand side: With the recent weakening of the manganese silicon futures price, steel mills in east China are mostly purchasing around 5,950 yuan/mt, including tax and delivery, and continue to drive down purchasing prices.

Overall, in the short term, the cost support for the SiMn market still exists, and supply continues to increase. The demand for SiMn from steel mills in September needs to be verified. Under these three conditions, the SiMn market may continue to operate in a weak and watchful manner recently.