After the Chinese Lunar New Year, price of titanium sponge in Chinese marker has been rising steadily. Enterprises’ quotation rose from USD7,684.13/t in late Feb. to USD8,011.17/t in early May. Though the increase rate was not so impressive, domestic titanium sponge enterprises still hold a firm attitude towards price increasing which indeed has been put into practice and reflected on the trading prices. According to CCM, there is hardly any titanium sponge sold in the domestic market at a price of lower than USD7,850/t.

Meanwhile, during Jan.-April 2015, China’s output of titanium sponge has also gained stable growth. In Jan. and Feb., some enterprises did not operate normally influenced by the Chinese Lunar New Year, leading to a relevant low output. In April, operating rates of titanium sponge enterprises began to climb up and some enterprises have already been in full production after inventory digestion of downstream enterprises and price raising heat led by key enterprises such as Luoyang Sunrui Wanji Titanium Co., Ltd. (Sunrui Wanji) and Chaoyang Jinda Titanium Co., Ltd. in March.

Output of major Chinese titanium sponge enterprises in Jan.-April 2015, tonne

Source: CCM

CCM knows that in 2014, China produced altogether 49,660 tonnes of titanium processed materials in total with a year-on-year increase of about 11.70% and the domestic sales volume reached 42,730 tonnes, increasing by 10.90% year on year. The increases can be mainly attributed to the growing demand from some domestic industries such as the electric power industry and the military industry. However, the aggregate output of titanium sponge in 2014 dropped to only 57,320 tonnes with a YoY decrease of 15.76% and a capacity utilization rate of merely 36.74% while its downstream demand increased year on year. Eight titanium sponge manufactures including Yunnan Xinli Nonferrous Metals Co., Ltd. suspended production in the whole year and their specific dates for production resumption were not released.

It is worth noting that in 2015, the development of Chinese titanium sponge industry is heading for a right direction. As more and more small and medium sized enterprises withdraw from the market, the concentration rate of the titanium industry is increasing. Besides, currently, the second phase project of Sunrui Wanji, the titanium sponge plant of Yunnan Tongye (Group) Titanium Co., Ltd. and the new 30,000 t/a titanium sponge project of Chaoyang Baisheng Zirconium Co., Ltd. are under construction, showing that titanium sponge enterprises are optimistic about the future market. What’s more, demand for titanium materials from the petrochemical industry and the military industry is soaring and application of titanium materials in many fields such as automobile, biomedicine, architecture and 3D printing has been widening. CCM thinks that Chinese titanium sponge market has a bright future with the release of demand from its downstream markets.

About CCM:

CCM is the leading market intelligence provider for China’s agriculture, chemicals, food & ingredients and life science markets. Founded in 2001, CCM offers a range of data and content solutions, from price and trade data to industry newsletters and customized market research reports. Our clients include Monsanto, DuPont, Shell, Bayer, and Syngenta. CCM is a brand of Kcomber Inc.

For more information about CCM, please visit www.cnchemicals.com or get in touch with us directly by emailing econtact@cnchemicals.com or calling +86-20-37616606.

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