Limited arrivals extend silicon metal social inventory destocking [SMM Silicon Inventory]

[SMM Silicone Weekly Review: Stalemate in the tug-of-war between upstream and downstream in the silicone market, overall trading remains subdued] This week, China's silicone market was characterized by a stalemate, with firm cost support and weak end-use demand. Rising prices of upstream raw materials provided strong support for product prices, and enterprises showed sufficient willingness to maintain stable prices. However, downstream end-user follow-through was sluggish, and overall market transactions were mainly driven by restocking for rigid demand. The industry was dominated by a strong wait-and-see sentiment, and price trends across various product categories showed structural divergence.

TOP Nanometal Corporation, a Taiwan-based roll-to-roll vacuum sputtering manufacturer, has discontinued production of Indium Tin Oxide transparent conductive film with immediate effect. The company will convert its former Indium Tin Oxide equipment entirely to high-end sputtered-copper production, focusing on adhesive-free Flexible Copper Clad Laminate, copper-coated polyester film for transparent light-emitting-diode displays and thin copper films for flexible electrodes. TOP Nanometal attributed the decision to intensifying competition and narrowing profit margins in the Indium Tin Oxide film market, while customer demand and profitability were stronger in sputtered-copper products. SMM believes the closure shows that conventional Indium Tin Oxide film faces growing cost and profitability competition from copper-based conductive materials in certain flexible-electronics and transparent-display applications. The conversion will reduce the company’s demand for Indium Tin Oxide targets and indium feedstock, although its previous film capacity, output, target purchases and indium consumption were not disclosed.

JX Advanced Metals Corporation plans to invest up to JPY120 billion over four years to substantially expand its production capacity for Indium Phosphide (InP) substrates used in optical communications. Including previously announced projects, the company’s cumulative investment in this area will reach approximately JPY150 billion. In addition to expanding its existing Isohara Works in Ibaraki Prefecture, JX Advanced Metals will establish additional capacity in the Hitachinaka area, targeting an increase in InP substrate production capacity to approximately seven to ten times its current level. The company said customer requests for additional supply associated with their own expansion plans have risen substantially and that demand is now growing beyond its previous expectations. It will also discuss price revisions with customers to establish a stable supply framework. SMM believes this is one of the clearest large-scale overseas InP substrate expansion plans announced to date and will generate substantial long-term demand for high-purity indium. Detailed construction phases, commissioning dates, wafer-size distribution and corresponding indium consumption were not disclosed.