Silicone

This week, the transaction price of DMC fell slightly due to the weak demand in the downstream terminal markets. The price of silicon metal was stable. The price of methyl chloride dropped, and that of methanol got down a bit. The production cost of DMC increased. In the week, the prices of OH polymer, gum, silicone fluid and HCR all stabilized in the case of the stable price of raw materials, increased production cost and the rigid demand in the downstream sectors. Although the downstream market enters the off-season of silicone demand, the silicone monomer producers would not lower the selling price under the cost pressure, the silicone price is expected to stay stable in the short term.  

Fumed silica

This week, the domestic fumed silica market showed a stable and positive performance. Some firms raised price due to the low inventory, while the others offered steady price. In terms of raw materials, since the supply of monomethyltrichlorosilane (MTCS) and silicon tetrachloride (STC) was sufficient in the market, their prices fell to a slight extent. In the week, the fumed silica enterprises had the stable operating rate and implemented the existing contract orders, and some of them stopped selling goods. The producers of RTV rubber and HCR in the downstream sectors bought fumed silica on the rigid demand, with the flat transaction volume. It is expected that the price of fumed silica will maintain consolidation at a high level in the short term. 

Silicon metal 

The price of silicon metal fell this week. In terms of supply, the silicon metal producers in Xinjiang resumed production, while those in Gansu and Inner Mongolia raised operating rate. In southwest China, a small number of producers shut down owing to the ending rain season, the rising power price and  the power restriction policy. However, as these factors had little impact on production, the overall supply of silicon metal increased. Concerning the demand, silicone factories didn’t improve their operation rates, some silicone monomer producers lowered prices, but the transaction was average. Polysilicon producers signed new contract orders with the low price, released new capacities and had growing demand for silicon metal. Aluminium alloy enterprises purchased silicon metal on their needs.

Polysilicon 

The polysilicon price dropped this week, with the improved transaction volume. First, the downstream silicon wafer firms reduced production by 50%, plummeting the demand for polysilicon. The polysilicon enterprises could have to cut down prices within a certain range. Second, the polysilicon firms mostly completed the existing contract orders and faced pressure on no new orders and the coming increasing inventory. In addition, the downstream players asked for lower polysilicon price, which posed pressure on the production costs of polysilicon enterprises. Some polysilicon companies are about to face losses.