Down In the Off Season, Chinese Ethylene Carbonate Runs Sluggishly

The manufacturer's offers for Ethylene Carbonate remained unchanged in the third week of January, with only a minor shift in the pricing trajectory. Speculation around Chinese New Year revealed certain infrastructure issues due to service delays and excessive inventory levels. As a result of the ripple effect, the FOB Qingdao discussions for Ethylene Carbonate fell to USD 2460 per tonne for the week ending January 21.

The Chinese New Year is usually celebrated for a week or occasionally longer, and it brings with it a period of low demand that has a negative impact on worldwide markets. When the typical speed of business slows and daily trade volume falls, prices become erratic. This year Lunar New Year is scheduled to be celebrated on the 1st of February.

Because the market is weak, the prices of the raw material Ethylene Oxide has remained stable. While the cost assistance remained relatively generous. This trend has persisted in the EO market since the Chinese government's efforts to ease power rationing in China. The current cost support is limited, coupled with the lack of demand, thereby keeping the market sentiment dull.

Downstream Lithium-ion batteries have also stabilised this week. However, due to strong demand from battery manufacturers, Lithium Carbonate prices in China reached record high in December. The Ethylene Carbonate market is expected to be weakly consolidated in the short term.

According to ChemAnalyst, the market players in the Chinese domestic market are concerned about the long-term closure of the production facility due to the upcoming holidays next month and the Winter Olympics. As a result, it is expected that the offtakes will increase before the end of January, while the prices may increase significantly.