APT Market Surges Significantly, Tungsten Market Sentiment Highly Bullish [SMM Tungsten Daily Review]

SMM October 27,

The tungsten market rose again today. On October 25, Guangdong Xianglu announced its long-term contract prices for the second half of October, with 55% black tungsten concentrate increasing by 15,000 yuan/mt to 282,000 yuan/mt, and APT rising by 20,000 yuan/mt to 410,000 yuan/mt. Market sentiment turned more bullish, and the transaction price center in the spot market moved up.

Mine end: As of October 27, SMM 65% black tungsten concentrate closed at 283,000-284,000 yuan/mt, up 5,000 yuan/mt WoW. Suppliers are optimistic about the future, holding back from selling, and with already tight spot order circulation, today's supply further decreased, leading to a stalemate in transactions.

Ammonium paratungstate (APT): Today, SMM APT (≥88.5%) was quoted at 410,000-430,000 yuan/mt, up 14,000 yuan/mt WoW. With limited spot orders and enterprises maintaining long-term contracts, spot order prices remained firm. The downstream powder segment entered a new round of restocking, highlighting a supply-demand imbalance, which significantly pushed up transaction prices. The overseas tungsten market mainly followed the upward trend, with European APT at 610-685 $/mtu (384,000-431,200 yuan/mt) as of today, up 5 $/mtu WoW. The synchronized rise in both overseas and domestic markets stimulated a bullish market sentiment. Today, the powder market sentiment turned bullish, with downstream buyers following suit, slightly lifting the price center. As of today, SMM tungsten carbide powder closed at 615 yuan/kg, up 5 yuan/kg WoW, and tungsten powder closed at 630 yuan/kg, also up 5 yuan/kg WoW.

Ferro-tungsten: Recently, ferro-tungsten steel tender volumes have improved, supported by increased costs and better demand, leading to a rise in ferro-tungsten prices. Today, the mainstream quotations for 70% ferro-tungsten were concentrated at 388,000-393,000 yuan/mt, up 3,000 yuan/mt WoW. European ferro-tungsten prices continued to climb, closing at 87-90.75 $/kg W, equivalent to 433,200-451,900 yuan/bmt.

Scrap tungsten: The scrap tungsten market saw tight supply, with suppliers refusing to budge on prices, and transactions mostly rising slightly. Today, SMM scrap tungsten rods closed at 426 yuan/kg, up 3 yuan/kg WoW. Downstream buyers were cautious due to high prices, resulting in moderate transaction activity.

In the short term, the increase in long-term contract prices boosted market confidence. Coupled with the tight supply of main raw materials such as mine and APT, transaction prices remained firm. The demand from downstream powder and cemented carbide enterprises showed resilience, with just-in-time restocking stimulating a strong market performance. In the medium and long-term, the annual quotas have not yet been released, making the supply volume trend unclear. However, there is a strong expectation of policy tightening, supporting the tungsten market. Global trade barriers have intensified, and the tungsten market is expected to continue fluctuating at highs.