Trading Atmosphere Stable, Acrylic Acid Market Operating Weakly in China

November 11, News

Currently, the acrylic acid market in China is showing a pattern of range-bound operation and overall stability. As of November 11, the benchmark price of acrylic acid is 6,200.00 CNY/ton, which is a 4.62% decrease from the beginning of the month (6,500.00 CNY/ton). The overall market sentiment remains stable. Traders are quoting prices according to the market, and downstream purchasing behavior has shown some divergence, but the inquiry and transaction activity in some regions have increased compared to earlier periods.

Cost Side:

The price of propylene, the upstream raw material, has been continuously rising. As of November 11, the benchmark price of propylene was 5958.25 CNY/ton, a decrease of 1.65% compared to the beginning of this month (6058.25 CNY/ton). This has directly increased the production cost of acrylic acid, forming a solid bottom for market prices and becoming the most critical factor in preventing the market from declining.

Supply Side:

Supply-side positive changes are the main driving force for market stabilization and even a potential rebound. Last weekend, a facility in Yantai entered planned maintenance, reducing spot supply in the region. A major acid plant in Shandong suspended its spot sales, significantly enhancing market expectations of tighter supply and directly strengthening producers' confidence in maintaining prices. Although facilities in Ningbo and Huizhou are scheduled to resume production this week, the overall industry operating rate is expected to remain at around 70%, keeping supply pressure manageable.

Demand Side:

The demand side is showing an uneven "hot-and-cold" trend: In northern regions, colder weather has restricted construction activities in some downstream industries, leading to weaker overall demand. However, as the market begins to stabilize—or even rebound—this has spurred a wave of "bottom-fishing" purchasing among certain downstream companies.

Overall, it is expected that the Chinese acrylic acid market will enter a phase of "consolidation and operation, with more likelihood of increase than decrease" in the short term. The strong cost support and the supply side's active intention to maintain prices will form a contest with regional demand differences. Under high cost pressure, there is very limited room for producers to lower prices. The overall market will mainly stabilize, but regions such as North China, driven by favorable supply-side factors, may see a slight increase.