BDO Market Continues to Fluctuate and Rise in China

March 27 News

According to the commodity market analysis system, from March 20 to 27, China’s BDO price rose from 7,900 CNY/ton to 8,157 CNY/ton, representing a price increase of 3.25% over the period, a month-on-month rise of 10.66%, and a year-on-year increase of 3.25%. Currently, BDO supply remains relatively stable, while cost pressures are mounting, driving auction prices higher and higher. At the same time, downstream demand is increasing, and multiple favorable factors are overlapping, prompting suppliers to adopt a more cautious stance under the new monthly policy. With downstream contract orders following closely behind, China’s BDO market continues to experience volatile upward trends.

Supply Side: There are many fluctuations in plant operations. Inventory holders are reluctant to sell at low prices, causing the online auction transaction prices to continue rising. The market supply remains relatively low, and the favorable support from the supply side still exists. The BDO supply side is influenced by positive factors.

Statistical Summary of Operating Conditions for Some Manufacturing Facilities:

Cost Perspective, the calcium carbide market in China continues to rise, with smooth shipments from production enterprises. As the price of calcium carbide increases, the profitability of these companies has significantly improved. The methanol market in China also continues its upward trend, supported by factors such as the steady demand from downstream olefin plants and the expected restart of MTO facilities in East China. Overall, the market sentiment is optimistic. The strong performance of raw materials like calcium carbide and methanol still puts pressure on the BDO industry's cost, but there are favorable factors influencing the BDO cost perspective.

Demand Side: On the downstream side, many industries have followed the upward trend in raw material prices, yet price increases in these downstream sectors have been smaller than those of the raw materials, intensifying cost pressures. Due to sluggish cost pass-through, downstream industries are primarily focusing on contract orders, with limited execution of spot transactions. A small number of urgent, small-scale orders are being negotiated at relatively high prices, thereby shifting the market’s center of gravity upward. The demand side for BDO is showing positive influencing factors.

Market Forecast: As supply volumes increase, support from the supply side has slightly weakened. Downstream demand is also expected to decline, widening the gap between supply and demand. Meanwhile, the cost transmission within the industrial chain remains sluggish, dampening downstream operators’ enthusiasm for starting production and thereby intensifying bargaining pressure on raw material prices. BDO analysts predict that the Chinese BDO market will mainly consolidate after recent price increases.