Recently, many titanium dioxide companies have announced to increase the sales price of titanium dioxide. On February 20, Longbai Group Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Longbai Group) stated that from now on, the sales price of various types of titanium dioxide of the company will be increased by 500 yuan/ton for domestic customers and USD100/ton for international customers. Other manufacturers immediately followed suit and started the second round of price increases in 2024.
At present, more than 10 titanium dioxide manufacturers have sent letters to adjust sales prices, raising prices by RMB 500 to RMB 700/ton for domestic customers and US$100/ton for international customers. As of the afternoon of February 23, more than 20 titanium dioxide manufacturers have announced an increase in the market price of titanium dioxide products, and more companies will follow up and announce increases in the future.
At present, the mainstream quotations of most domestic sulfate-based rutile and anatase titanium dioxide range from 17,000 to 18,500 yuan/ton and 15,500 to 16,500 yuan/ton. The mainstream prices of domestic and imported chloride-based rutile titanium dioxide range from 20,500 to 20,500 yuan/ton according to their uses. 23,000 yuan/ton and 31,000 to 35,000 yuan/ton.
Yang Xun, a titanium industry analyst, believes that there are three reasons for this wave of price increases. First, during the Spring Festival, most domestic manufacturers maintained normal production. Although the "internal circulation" of domestic trade was temporarily suspended, the "external circulation" of foreign trade "It is still being delivered, so the domestic spot tension has not been relieved to the extent expected. It is still relatively tense at this stage. The second is the return to the market after the holiday. Although there are not many new domestic orders, the supply side is mostly in the state of pre-delivery orders, so social inventory is also at a low level. Third, the prices of raw materials titanium concentrate and sulfuric acid are high, and manufacturers' costs are still relatively high.
Qi Yu, a titanium analyst at Tu Duoduo Data Management Department, added that the titanium dioxide industry has experienced its second consecutive rise this year. In addition to the shutdown of some companies during the Spring Festival and the decline in start-up, it is also due to the tight market supply of domestic downstream terminal companies before the holiday. White powder companies are controlling orders; foreign trade demand is strong and there are many export orders; titanium dioxide manufacturers have low inventories and strong raw material cost support. Because of this, the market has been affected by price increases, and companies have increased orders on hand. Some companies have arranged orders until late March. The titanium dioxide market will operate well in the short term, and market quotations will also remain strong.
Regarding the market outlook, Yang Xun believes that in the short term, following the pace of large titanium dioxide manufacturers, many manufacturers may continue to follow up and announce increases, and titanium dioxide prices may rise again. As the demand side has not fully recovered, and the demand before the Spring Festival is slightly overdrawn, there is also a certain risk of weakness in titanium dioxide prices.