In early August, the domestic propylene glycol market fluctuated and fell back. At the beginning of the month, the market still had expectations of rising prices. With some companies lowering their factory quotes, the focus of spot trading gradually shifted downwards, and on-site negotiations were mainly based on actual orders, resulting in a widening gap between high and low prices. As of August 13th, the average production price of propylene glycol in Shandong region was 9266 yuan/ton, a decrease of 2.80% from the beginning of the month.
Core driving factors
Supply side: The early maintenance equipment has resumed production one after another, the industry’s production has increased month on month, and the market supply of goods has increased; The operation of the dimethyl carbonate co production unit is stable, and the by-product propylene glycol continues to flow out, increasing market supply pressure; A small number of devices have fluctuations, forming a slight buffer in supply, resulting in an overall shortage of imported goods and limited external impact.
On the cost side, the raw material propylene oxide has weak fluctuations, propylene follows the fluctuations of crude oil, and the cost support of propylene glycol has loosened. The cost side does not have strong upward momentum, but there is still some support at the bottom of the raw materials, and the space for a significant deep decline is limited.
Demand side: Located in the traditional off-season of summer, the downstream production of unsaturated polyester resin and alkyd resin is relatively low, and the orders for terminal building materials and composite materials are weak. Downstream purchases are mostly for essential needs, and there is a lack of willingness to stock up; Daily chemical and food grade essential needs are stable, but their proportion is limited, making it difficult to drive the overall market; Export orders remain resilient and divert domestic sources to a certain extent, but it is not enough to reverse the domestic off-season pattern.
Market forecast:
In the short term, it is expected that propylene glycol will continue to fluctuate weakly within the range. The resumption of production on the supply side has brought about an increase in supply and accumulated pressure on inventory; The off-season on the demand side is still ongoing, making it difficult for downstream companies to make significant improvements; The cost side epoxy propane has bottom support, and the price has limited room for deep decline. Focus on tracking the trend of raw material epoxy propane, changes in equipment maintenance, and downstream replenishment rhythm.

1、 Market Overview
In the past week (August 5-11), the spot price of PA66 remained stable at 18133.33 yuan/ton for a long time. On August 11, it experienced a decline, with a daily drop of 1.65%, and the spot price fell to 17833.33 yuan/ton. From the perspective of cyclical prices, the 10-90 day cycle is all in the low range, and the annual price is in the mid low range. The overall market is still under pressure to decline, and the moving averages are bearish. The short-term moving averages continue to cross the medium and long-term moving averages, and the downward trend has not reversed.
2、 Cost analysis
The supply of upstream raw material adiponitrile is loose, and the market quotation continues to be weak. The weekly settlement price of caprolactam has steadily declined, and the overall cost support for nylon raw materials is insufficient. Recently, the overall market for chemical raw materials has been sluggish, with a lack of favorable factors driving the crude oil sector. Raw material factories have a strong willingness to ship, and the downward trend in upstream raw material prices continues to compress the cost bottom line of PA66; At the same time, most of the devices in the industry maintain high load operation, and there is no upward pressure on raw material procurement costs, making it difficult for the cost side to drive the recovery of slicing prices.
3、 Supply and demand analysis
1. Supply side
The operating rate of PA66 production enterprises in China remains high, and the overall supply of goods is sufficient, with industry inventory gradually accumulating. In order to ensure the shipment of orders, manufacturers continue to lower their quotations to stimulate transactions. The market has ample circulation of spot goods, and there is no shortage of goods. The relaxed supply environment suppresses the rebound space of spot prices.
2. Demand side
The downstream textile and nylon fabric industry has entered a traditional off-season, with low operating loads in downstream factories. Most enterprises purchase goods in small quantities according to demand, without large-scale stocking plans. The foreign trade order market is flat, and overseas customers are cautious in purchasing; The recovery of the terminal consumer market is slow, downstream finished product inventory is high, and the upward transmission of raw material procurement demand is weak, resulting in a supply-demand pattern of oversupply.
4、 Short term forecast
The short-term PA66 market lacks favorable drivers, and the current situation of weak upstream raw material prices, abundant spot supply, and weak downstream demand during the off-season is difficult to improve quickly. The price remains at a low level for the year in the medium to long term, and the downward space has gradually narrowed; The market is likely to maintain a low and volatile operation, and it is difficult to see a trend upward in the short term. It is not ruled out that there may be a slight exploration of a new low in the short term, and the market will only have a turning point after the downstream starts to recover in the golden autumn season.

In August 2026, the domestic 1 # lead ingot market rebounded and rose, with an average price of 15330 yuan/ton on August 3 and 15765 yuan/ton as of August 11, an increase of 2.84%.
Fundamental analysis
Supply side intertwining long and short positions
In terms of primary lead, smelting enterprises rely on profits from by-products such as silver and sulfuric acid to offset losses in lead ingot processing. The comprehensive profit is still acceptable, and the production in August is expected to remain high and stable, constituting the main pressure on the supply side. However, some refineries in Hunan and other regions have undergone routine maintenance, and the supply of primary lead has been temporarily tightened. In terms of recycled lead, due to the tight supply of waste batteries and widespread industry losses, the operating rate continues to decline, and the production in August is expected to decrease month on month. The contraction of recycled lead supply constitutes the core bottom support for lead prices.
Weak repair on the demand side
Currently, it is still in the off-season for lead-acid battery consumption, and there has been no significant increase in terminal orders. Although August has entered the traditional peak season stocking window of “Golden September and Silver October”, it is limited by the backlog of finished product inventory and weak exports, and the downstream replenishment efforts are only seasonal weak repairs.
In terms of inventory, as of August 11th, the previous period’s inventory was 60927 tons; Although LME lead inventory continues to decrease slightly, the absolute amount is still at a historical high of over 420000 tons.
Comprehensive Summary
The loss and production reduction of recycled lead provide bottom support, and the tight mining situation continues, with limited room for further decline in lead prices. However, doubts about the strength of terminal demand recovery, high global explicit inventories, and stable primary lead supply jointly suppress the upward space. It is expected that the short-term lead price will mainly fluctuate within a range and gradually rise at the bottom, and the market may repeatedly grind to the bottom, with insufficient unilateral upward drive. The key variable for the subsequent trend lies in the actual fulfillment of the peak demand for batteries from late August to September.

Recently, the formic acid market has shown a stable and sideways trend, with limited overall market volatility. As of August 10th, the benchmark price of 85% industrial grade formic acid in China was 1800 yuan/ton, a decrease of 21.74% compared to the same period last month. The price remains stable in the short-term low range, and the overall market shows obvious supply-demand game characteristics. The short-term upward momentum is insufficient, and the pressure situation in the medium and long term has not changed.
From the perspective of market supply and demand pattern, the current formic acid market is intertwined with long and short factors, forming a dynamic balance situation. The core factor supporting the current low price stabilization is the low inventory of manufacturers. Due to the low prices, downstream end customers have increased their willingness to stock up on dips, effectively consuming manufacturers’ spot inventory. The overall inventory level of the industry is at a low level, which provides solid support for spot prices and avoids further significant price declines. However, at the same time, the market’s favorable support is relatively weak, and overall terminal demand remains weak with no obvious signs of recovery. Downstream demand follow-up is insufficient, and overall market transactions are flat, which cannot drive price rebound and rise, becoming the core negative factor restricting the upward trend of the market.
From the perspective of subsequent changes in the supply side, the overall supply pressure of the industry will gradually rebound, bringing downward pressure to the future market. In the early stage, multiple formic acid production units in the industry completed shutdown maintenance. With the end of the maintenance cycle, related units gradually entered the resumption stage, and the subsequent market spot supply will steadily increase. Against the backdrop of terminal demand not yet recovering, the release of supply increment will break the current weak supply-demand balance, exacerbate the market supply-demand imbalance pattern, and lead to weak upward momentum and continuous accumulation of downward risks in the formic acid market.
Overall, in early August, the domestic formic acid market achieved low price stability supported by low inventory, but the dual negative factors of weak terminal demand and subsequent supply increment continued to suppress the market trend. The short-term market may continue to operate in a low volatility mode, and there is currently no opportunity for significant price fluctuations; In the medium to long term, with the comprehensive resumption of production of maintenance equipment, the pressure on the supply side is concentrated and released, while the demand side is difficult to quickly recover. The overall trend of the domestic formic acid market is still bearish, and there is a possibility of further price decline. Specific attention still needs to be paid to changes in market supply and demand.

At the beginning of the week, the price of potassium sulfate with a 50% content was 4040 yuan/ton, and over the weekend, the price of potassium sulfate with a 50% content was 4033 yuan/ton, a decrease of 0.17% in price.

This week, the market price of potassium sulfate has been weak, with a factory price of about 4250-4300 yuan/ton for 52% powder/fully water-soluble powder, and a factory price of about 3700-3850 yuan/ton for 50% resource-based potassium sulfate powder upon arrival. The overall supply and demand of the domestic potassium sulfate market are loose, with a slight downward trend in some areas. The market is in a game of cost support and weak demand, with an overall trading atmosphere that is relatively weak, and there is a large bargaining space for actual transactions.

Demand side: Currently in the off-season for fertilizer use in summer, the demand for fertilizer preparation in autumn has not yet been concentrated, and the operating rate of downstream compound fertilizer factories is lower than expected, which limits the support for the demand for potassium sulfate. Downstream enterprises mainly purchase on demand, with insufficient willingness to replenish inventory on a large scale, resulting in a sluggish overall market transaction volume. Some enterprises have resorted to hidden price cuts and discounts to promote transaction orders

Prediction: The potassium sulfate market is experiencing weak trading, and it is expected that the domestic potassium fertilizer market prices will mainly fluctuate and weaken in the short term.