SMM Manganese Market Review

SHANGHAI, May 24 (SMM) - 

SiMn alloy

Cost: From the raw material end, overseas manganese ore quotes in June are as follows: Australia lump: $8/mtu, down $0.22/mtu; semi-carbonate ore: $5/mtu, down $0.3/mtu; Gabon lump: $7.2/mtu, down $0.4/mtu. Australia ore was priced at $62-63/mtu with a small amount traded at $61/mtu; semi-carbonate ore at $39/mtu and Gabon ore at $53-54/mtu. Coke prices have dropped for three rounds in a row, and secondary metallurgical coke was sold at 2,950 yuan/mt.

Power tariff: Electricity tariff was 0.51 yuan/kWh in Inner Mongolia, 0.46-0.48 yuan/kWh in Ningxia, about 0.68 yuan/kWh in Guangxi (except Baise city), 0.56 yuan/kWh in Baise city, 0.57 yuan/kWh in Guizhou (except Xingyi city) and 0.51 yuan/kWh in Xingyi city.

On the whole, spot raw material costs stood at 8,049 yuan/mt in Inner Mongolia, 8,007 yuan/mt in Ningxia, 8,545 yuan/mt in Baise, Guangxi, 9,025 yuan/mt in the rest of Guangxi, 8,207 yuan/mt in Xingyi and 8,447 yuan/mt in the rest of Guizhou, with all falling by about 100 yuan/mt.  

Supply: Some enterprises in north China planned the cut the production by about 30-40%, while a few enterprises have already reduced the production. Due to high costs in south China, some enterprises that produce #6517 SiMn alloy have halved the production, while others that produce #6014 maintained normal production thanks to relatively low cost.

Demand: The ex-works prices stood at around 8,200-8,350 yuan/mt in cash in north China, and some traders quoted 8,100 yuan/m. The ex-factory prices were around 8,250-8,400/mt in cash in south China, with a small number traded at 8,100-8,150 yuan/mt. The bid price of steel mills in Guangxi in June is 8,300 yuan/mt.

EMM

Supply: The only manganese plant in Shaanxi province was completely shut down in mid-May due to operation losses, and the resumption time has not yet been confirmed for the time being. Most of the manganese plants in Hunan province were shut down due to environmental protection requirements, among which a few manganese plants maintained the daily output of around 100 mt with in-plant ore stocks, and the situation is expected to last until the end of June. Manganese plants in Ningxia, Xinjiang, Guizhou and Yunnan, which are the main producing areas, all have high operating rates and there are no plans to reduce or stop the production. Overall, the supply side is relatively sufficient.

Import/Export: The export volume of EMM and manganese products in April was 38,071 mt an increase of 41% MoM, including 32,652 mt of EMM, an increase of 37% MoM, and 5,419 mt of manganese products, an increase of 74% MoM. The import volume of EMM and manganese products in April was 5,766 mt, an increase of 40% MoM, including 5,662 mt of EMM, an increase of 39% MoM, and 104 mt of manganese products, an increase of 117% MoM.

Prices: EMM prices are likely to drop amid oversupply even after steel mills completed their bidding. The prices are likely to move around 14,850-15,150 yuan/mt this week, and FOB prices between $2,250-2,350/mt.