The silicon metal market in December 2021

The Review of Silicon Metal Market

Metallurgical grade silicon market

In December, the metallurgical silicon metal market showed a downward trend , and the decline was slightly smaller than that in November. Among them, 553# is showing signs of a slight rebound, but market transactions are limited by abundant supply and it is difficult to move up. The end users just release the urgent demand slowly, placed small orders and continued to keep prices down.

Chemical grade silicon market

In December, the chemical-grade silicon metal market was gradually active, but the transaction price showed a sharp downward trend. This month, only a few terminal silicone factories stopped production for overhaul, and most of them produced steadily and started purchasing gradually. At the end of this year, the silicone market began to show a rebound trend, with smooth shipments and rising prices. At present, there are still some chemical silicon factories reluctant to sell and stock up. On the one hand, it is difficult to sell goods at high prices. On the other hand, the market is still optimistic about 2022. The production of chemical silicon is difficult, and the decline in output is an inevitable trend, and the terminal may change other brands of products to substitute. It is not very effective, and it is difficult to achieve at least in the short term. Therefore, after 1.1 million tons of new projects are put into production in next year, the consumption of chemical silicon in the market will increase.

The Exporting Market of Silicon Metal

In November, the total exports of metal silicon amounted to 58,154 tons, an increase of 7,025 tons from the previous month, an increase of 13.74%, and a year-on-year decrease of 14,589 tons, a decrease of 20.06%. From January to November, exports totaled 714,596 tons, an increase of 152,309 tons or 27.09% over the same period of last year (562,287 tons).The number of overseas orders is small in December, most customers have entered into a vacation state in the second half of the month, and the overall market transactions are not active. Prices in the domestic market have fallen overall, with a decline of over 15%-30%.

The Operation and Capacity

In December, 348 of metal silicon plants were opened, reduced 29 furnaces compared with last month. and increased by 61 sets compared with last year. The operating rate was 57.33%, about 6.24% down from the last month, and up 10.13% year-on-year. The monthly production capacity was 315,100 tons, and the capacity release rate was 57.69%, decreased by 6.64% compared with last month. The monthly output is about 275,400 tons, a month-on-month decrease of 7,050 tons, a drop of 2.49%, and a year-on-year increase of 53,400 tons, an increase of 24.05%. The total output of metal silicon in the submerged arc furnace plant for the year was 2,785,490 tons, an increase of 25.39% compared with last year.

The price of silicon metal continued to decline this month, and factories in many regions no longer had too much profit. The enthusiasm for production has dropped significantly, and the power supply is limited during the dry season. The Sichuan and Yunnan factories have also gradually reduced production, and will further reduce production in January. It is expected that the national operating rate will continue to drop by 6-8% in January, and the monthly output may drop to 220,000 to 240,000 tons.

The Market Prediction For January 2022

Up to now, the price gap between the high and low grades of metal silicon has narrowed, and the daily rise and fall of silicon prices have also narrowed to 100-200 yuan. The silicon metal market is showing a state of no room for decline, and price increases are limited by the slow release of rigid demand by downstream factories and the surplus of social stocks has caused buyers to frequently lower prices. As for the lack of confidence in the market trend in the first quarter of 2022, traders and terminals have no plans to stock up too much. At present, traders have a heavy wait-and-see sentiment. Terminal factories will gradually release rigid demand before the Spring Festival and it will be difficult to stimulate price increases. It does not rule out the possibility of a short-term rebound in prices after silicon plants cut production when profits are running low.