[SMM Separator Weekly Review] Prices remained stable overall this week.

Published: Jul 16, 2026 18:03
[SMM Analysis] Separator Market Prices Remain Stable Overall

The separator market remained largely stable this week. In terms of specific quotations, high-end wet-process separator prices held firm: 5μm (5μ+2μ) was quoted at 1.57-1.87 yuan/m², 7μm (7μ+2μ) mainstream quotations were 1.14-1.337 yuan/m², and 9μm (9μ+3μ) was quoted at 1.135-1.29 yuan/m². Supply side, newly added capacity in July was still driven mainly by upgrading existing production lines, leading to a slow growth pace. Top-tier players had accepted current quotation levels, and overall prices were expected to remain stable in July. However, divergence emerged across different products: base film prices saw limited gains, mainly because second- and third-tier enterprises maintained a relatively competitive pricing strategy; prices for coated products were relatively firm due to tight supply-demand conditions. From a supply-demand fundamental perspective, the separator market was still in a state of undersupply. End-use production schedules in July grew approximately 7% MoM, with both the EV and ESS sectors staying highly buoyant. Driven by this, separator production in July rose 3.71% MoM, but the production growth rate still lagged end-use demand growth, keeping a supply-demand gap in place. The industry’s overall operating rate stayed above 80%. Battery cell enterprises not only locked in mainstream separator capacity, but some long-term supply agreements further extended to second- and third-tier separator enterprises, pushing the industry’s overall capacity utilization rate to stay high. After a previous round of price adjustments took effect, the market entered a new price-implementation phase. Separator prices are expected to stay largely stable in the short term; the subsequent trend will depend on the pace of new capacity release and downstream acceptance of price increases.

SMM New Energy Research Department

Wang Cong 021-51666838

Ma Rui 021-51595780

Feng Disheng 021-51666714

Lyu Yanlin 021-20707875

Zhang Haohan 021-51666752

Wang Zihan 021-51666914

Wang Jie 021-51595902

Xu Yang 021-51666760

Chen Bolin 021-51666836

Yang Le 021-51595898

Li Yisha 021-51666730

Data Source Statement: Except for publicly available information, all other data are processed by SMM based on publicly available information, market communication, and relying on SMM's internal database model. They are for reference only and do not constitute decision-making recommendations.

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