Silicone

This week, the price of DMC dropped. Multiple silicone monomer producers restarted their plants, making the domestic DMC output increase. The downstream players decreased passion for filling inventories. The price of silicon metal rose. The prices of methyl chloride and methanol adjusted slightly. The production cost of DMC was going up. In the week, amid the decreasing price of raw materials, the prices of OH polymer, gum and silicone fluid got stable but dropped in some regions, and HCR price was down to a small extent. The supply of DMC increased and the demand in the downstream sectors didn’t improve. It’s expected that the silicone price would stay relatively low in the short period.

Fumed silica

This week, the domestic fumed silica market was stable. The enterprises in China mostly offered steady prices. In terms of raw materials, the price of silicon tetrachloride (STC) was stable, while that of monomethyltrichlorosilane (MTCS) turned into being stable. The supply of MTCS increased due to the rising operating rate in silicone monomers producers. In the week, the enterprises had the low operating rate, releasing the inventory pressure of fumed silica. The downstream enterprises of RTV, HCR etc. purchased fumed silica on rigid demand. The increasing supply of MTCS may cause its price to fall, which would reduce the production cost of fumed silica. The downstream firms enter the traditional peak season, with expectations for an increasing demand for fumed silica. Therefore, the price of fumed silica is expected to consolidate in the short term. 

Silicon metal 

This week, the domestic price of silicon metal stabilized after rising. The big manufacturers raised prices and the futures prices went up, but the increment of price was not as high as in the previous period. The spot supply of silicon metal was tight, leading to a rebound in spot prices. In the wet season, the enterprises in southwest China ran well, especially for those that are in Sichuan and Yunnan provinces had the high operating rate. In the near future, producers in southwest and Xinjiang have expectations of production growth, and the overall supply will continue to increase. The demand of silicon metal was improving slightly. Polysilicon was short of supply and its price was rising a bit. The silicone enterprises will raise the operating rate and need more silicon metal. Overall, the price of silicon metal is expected to remain high in the short term.

Polysilicon 

This week, the polysilicon market price continued rising, and the price increase of P-type polysilicon surpassed that of N-type, which are attributed to as follows: First, a great number of long-term orders were signed by many enterprises. P-type polysilicon orders drove the continuous price rise. Second, the ingot mono pulling companies running at the full production capacity drove the demand of polysilicon. According to an announcement of a big factory on August 25th, it raised silicon wafer price by 15.36%, supporting a rise of polysilicon price. Third, although some companies ended impact of power restrictions, it will take time for production capacity to recover, which will affect polysilicon supply in the near future and exacerbate expectations of tight supply of polysilicon.