Supply Increase Leads to Decline in Maleic Anhydride Market in China

November 04, News

According to the commodity analysis system, the recent maleic anhydride market in China has slightly declined. As of November 4th, the average market price for maleic anhydride produced by the n-butane oxidation method was maintained at 5325 CNY/ton, a decrease of 0.93% from 5375 CNY/ton on October 27th.

Supply side: Recently, the maleic anhydride market has declined. The auction at Wanhua Yantai did not result in any transactions, and the auction at Wanhua East China was not fully completed. Coupled with the price drop, the support for the maleic anhydride market is limited, and the prices of major factories have followed the decline. Currently, there are plans for resumed production in Shandong and new facilities in Fujian to start selling, increasing the market supply, which provides limited support to the maleic anhydride market. As of November 4th, in the Shandong region, the factory price of solid maleic anhydride is around 4900 CNY/ton, and the factory price of liquid maleic anhydride is around 4650 CNY/ton.

Upstream: Recently, the n-butane market has been continuously rising, supporting the maleic anhydride market. As of November 4th, the price in Shandong, China, is around 4,420 CNY per ton.

Downstream: Recently, raw material prices for unsaturated resins have declined, providing limited support to resin market conditions, which have now fallen to their lowest point of the year.

The maleic anhydride product analyst notes that currently, production facilities in Shandong's maleic anhydride-producing region have resumed operations, while a new facility in Fujian is set to begin external sales—leading to an increase in market supply and prompting cautious market behavior. Additionally, weak and consolidating demand for unsaturated resins, the primary downstream application of maleic anhydride, is providing limited support to the market. As a result, the analyst expects the maleic anhydride market to likely decline slightly in the near term.