Recently, due to the tight supply of small and medium-sized electrodes in the market, mainstream manufacturers are also increasing the production of these products. It is expected that the market will gradually arrive in May-June. However, due to the continuous increase in prices, some steel mills have begun to wait and see, and their purchasing enthusiasm has weakened. There are also some Fujian electric furnace steel mills who have stockpiled a lot of stocks, which are expected to be slowly digested after May.
As of April 15, the mainstream price of UHP450mm with 30% needle coke content on the market is 192-1198 yuan/ton, an increase of 200-300 yuan/ton from last week, and the mainstream price of UHP600mm is 235-2.5 million yuan/ton. , An increase of 500 yuan/ton, and the price of UHP700mm at 30,000-32,000 yuan/ton, which also rose by the same rate. The price of high-power graphite electrodes is temporarily stable, and the price of ordinary power electrodes has also increased by 500-1000 yuan/ton, and the mainstream price is between 15000-19000 yuan/ton.
Raw materials
The price of raw materials has not changed much this week, and the transaction situation is average. Recently, Fushun and Dagang raw material plants have been overhauled and the supply of raw materials is generally stable. However, due to the high prices, graphite electrode manufacturers are not enthusiastic about getting goods, and prices continue to rise. Downstream transactions are weakening. It is expected that quotations will continue to rise, and actual transaction prices will remain stable in the short term. As of this Thursday, the quotation of Fushun Petrochemical 1#A petroleum coke remained at 5200 yuan/ton, and the offer of low-sulfur calcined coke was 5600-5800 yuan/ton.
Domestic needle coke prices have remained stable this week. At present, the mainstream prices of domestic coal-based and oil-based products are 8500-11000 yuan/ton.
Steel plant aspect
After continuous price increases, domestic steel prices first fell and then rose this week, but the transaction was relatively light, and there was a phenomenon of stagflation in the short term. According to the latest data from the China Iron and Steel Association, in early April 2021, the key statistical iron and steel enterprises produced an average daily output of 2,273,900 tons of crude steel, a month-on-month increase of 2.88% and a year-on-year increase of 16.86%. The profitability of electric furnace steel was stable this week.