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The Chinese brown fused (BFA) and white fused alumina (WFA) markets held firm in the two weeks to Thursday October 29 after previous gains on a stronger Chinese yuan.
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The market for refractory grade bauxite and brown fused alumina (BFA) ticked up in the past fortnight to Thursday October 15 on a rising yuan after China's Golden Week holiday in early October, while white fused alumina (WFA) held firm after previous upward adjustments.
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Fastmarkets opened a consultation on September 1, 2020, inviting feedback on its industrial minerals methodology in line with our annual methodology review process.
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Prices of bauxite, white fused alumina (WFA) and abrasive-grade brown fused alumina (BFA) all ticked upward on exchange-rate fluctuations and rising freight rates during the two weeks to Thursday September 17, the first positive pricing moves in all three commodities for several months.
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Refractory-grade bauxite prices have held firm due to tightening supply despite the uncertainties caused the Covid-19 pandemic.
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Prices of brown fused alumina (BFA), white fused alumina (WFA) and refractory-grade bauxite remained stable on limited trading during the two weeks ended Thursday September 3, pausing a sharply bearish trend that had affected both commodities in recent months.
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Fastmarkets is inviting feedback from the industry on its pricing methodology for its industrial minerals, as part of its annual methodology review process and compliance with the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) principles for PRAs.
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Refractory grade bauxite prices in China dropped in the two weeks to Thursday, August 20 amid “extremely slow” demand, while both brown fused alumina (BFA) and white fused alumina (WFA) prices remained under pressure.
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The price of white fused alumina (WFA) made a further downward move during the past fortnight despite participants’ expectations the market had bottomed out owing to changes in feedstock prices during previous weeks.
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The price for brown fused alumina (BFA) fell for a second consecutive assessment because of soft demand during a slow summer that was also affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, while the price of white fused alumina (WFA) ticked upward slightly and bauxite stayed mostly flat.
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Sluggish fundamentals for refractories continue to put pressure on speciality calcined alumina raw materials, with prices showing further bearish movement.
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The price of white fused alumina (WFA) fell further in the fortnight to Thursday June 25, on continued weakness in consumer end markets and limited orders from users.
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Bearish market conditions for refractory raw materials amid the Covid-19 pandemic continued to weigh on prices, with all grades of calcined bauxite falling while the fused alumina price fell and is reportedly below cost of production, sources said.
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Refractories production in China fell to 1.65 million tonnes in April, down by 4.1% year on year, according to data from the China Association of Refractories.
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China’s export shipments of refractory-grade bauxite unexpectedly rose in April by 34% despite the global consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, exports of brown fused alumina (BFA) increased by 5% but those of white fused alumina (WFA) fell by 5%, with market weakness still evident, according to sources.
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The price of white fused alumina (WFA) fell still further on the low end of the range, amid the dollar’s depreciation against the euro over the fortnight ended Thursday May 28. Prices for refractory-grade bauxite and brown fused alumina (BFA) stayed flat while demand remained sluggish.
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China’s ports have resumed normal operations but overseas demand for exported materials remains reduced by the Covid-19 pandemic, resulting in lower container throughput. Most producers of refractory raw materials, however, continued to get limited orders from global buyers.
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Fused alumina prices have fallen further during the two weeks to Thursday May 14 because of continued bearish pressure resulting from weak demand from refractories consumers, while bauxite prices remained flat on a largely muted export market and scarcity of supply in China.
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Producers of andalusite in various countries have been able to restart operations after Covid-19 pandemic lockdowns, although they warned that a return to pre-closure output volumes will be slow and gradual.
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Brown fused alumina (BFA) and white fused alumina (WFA) prices are increasingly moving separately in their pricing patterns, with the latter having deepened its price discount to BFA against a historic premium.
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China's refractories output fell to 4.10 million tonnes in the first quarter of 2020, mainly due to a slowdown in production caused by the response to the Covid-19 outbreak.
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Fused alumina prices have dropped significantly in the past fortnight, with brown fused alumina (BFA) falling to a two-year low and following the path of white fused alumina (WFA), which has lost value for a second consecutive assessment.
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The decline in shipments of refractory-grade bauxite and fused alumina out of China eased off toward the end of the first quarter of 2020, compared with the plunge of more than 30% year-on-year seen in January and February.
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The price for white fused alumina (WFA) in China has fallen over the past two weeks to reach a two-year low in the assessment on Thursday April 16.
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Refractory grade bauxite remained mostly flat amid a quiet seaborne market and poor availability over the past fortnight. Brown fused alumina (BFA) ticked up while white fused alumina (WFA) dropped, and participants warned of a potential cliff edge in demand ahead.
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Calcined alumina prices remained stable in early April after a decline over previous months, with both producers and consumers assessing the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic for local operations.
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The total output of refractory materials in China increased by 3.7% year-on-year to 24.31 million tonnes in 2019. But most refractory raw materials prices were still under downward pressure.
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Poor availability has continued to support prices for refractory-grade bauxite over the past fortnight, while the price for white fused alumina (WFA) ticks upward and brown fused alumina (BFA) remains flat.
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Bauxite prices in China have increased again over the past fortnight on low restart rates of mining and calcination activities in producing areas, market participants said.
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The price of refractory-grade bauxite rose in the two weeks to Thursday February 20 due to a low production recovery rate and limited logistics in the main Chinese production hub of Shanxi province, while fused alumina remained unchanged on production and delivery uncertainty in Henan.
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A recovery of China’s bauxite and fused alumina production remained uncertain in the major production hubs of Henan and Shanxi provinces due to the coronavirus outbreak, creating concern about supply and delivery of the refractory material in the short term.
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Participants active in the bauxite and fused alumina markets expect short-term supply shortages to affect consuming destinations in areas including Europe, while sellers take stock of the shipping disruptions arising from measures taken to contain the coronavirus outbreak in China.
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View the Fastmarkets holiday pricing schedule for 2020 and 2021.
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Beginning in 2020, Fastmarkets will review its pricing methodologies and price specifications across all its Price Reporting Agency (PRA) divisions - Metals & Mining and Forest Products - on an annual basis rather than twice per year.
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The appreciation of the Chinese yuan against the US dollar is adding pressure to the quiet markets for fused alumina and bauxite before the Chinese new year holiday period.
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Fused alumina production suspensions have become a common occurrence in China’s Henan province, due to the region’s deteriorating air quality in winter.
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Availability could have dropped slightly for 2019 after last year's strong production, while demand in main consuming markets has softened because of the weak performance across refractories.
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Cheap alumina powder feedstock continues to favour lower offer prices for WFA, while weak demand and uncertainty over availability during China’s winter season support BFA and bauxite.
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Amid muted demand, environmental crackdowns and increasingly short supply of high-grade feedstock, producers are seeking changes to their operations in Henan province, a production hub for brown fused alumina (BFA).
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Fastmarkets assessed all main grades of both brown and white fused alumina lower as well as the prices of 86% and 88% calcined bauxite.
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The Fastmarkets holiday pricing schedule has been updated to reflect the official announcement of public holidays in China for 2020.
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Exchange rate fluctuations are adding to an ongoing sluggish demand scenario
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Fastmarkets IM looks at three key takeaways from China’s first Fused Alumina Trade Show, held in Sanmenxia in China’s Henan province over October 22-24.
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Authorities in China’s Henan province are turning the screw on local producers in their attempts to further improve air quality in the province’s main industrial areas, but this has not helped to support prices.
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The implementation of China's environmental regulations will have important repercussions for the price of bauxite this winter, especially with the continuing uncertainty about levels of demand.
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Refractory-grade bauxite and fused alumina prices remained relatively stable amid supply disruptions caused by Beijing’s environmental efforts and dampened demand from end users.
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China’s shipments of refractory-grade bauxite to the international markets was lower year-on-year in July on slow demand from global buyers and disrupted supply within the country.
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Brown and white fused alumina prices are easing in China, even with the emergence of supply concerns caused by pollution controls in Henan province.
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Buyers of calcined alumina are putting downward pressure on producers’ prices during second-half contract negotiations, with sentiment turning because of weaker end markets.
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