Price trend

According to the bulk ranking data from Shengyi Society, the domestic PC market experienced a consolidation after a rise in December, with most spot prices of certain brands first rising and then fluctuating. As of December 31st, the mixed benchmark price of Business Society PC is around 16516.67 yuan/ton, with a price increase or decrease of 3.99% compared to early December.

Cause analysis

On the supply side: In December, the load changes of domestic PC aggregation enterprises were limited. At the beginning of the month, companies such as Jiaxing Emperor gradually returned, and the industry average operating rate increased from 75% at the beginning of the month to over 80%, and then slightly fell back to 78%. The average weekly production remains at a super high level of over 60000 tons. The on-site supply of goods is still abundant, and the mismatch between supply and demand remains unchanged. The high inventory has led to cautious pricing by manufacturers, while the market supply side has provided average support for PC prices.

In terms of raw materials: After a previous downturn, the bisphenol A market rebounded significantly in December. At the beginning of the month, some companies underwent maintenance and there was news of delayed production of new equipment, which led to favorable news on the supply side. At the same time, the arrival of raw material phenol cargo at the port was delayed at the end of November, and the main downstream PC and epoxy resin stocks were stable. Influenced by multiple favorable factors, the price of bisphenol A rebounded. But as the bulls gradually ran out, the upward trend of bisphenol A prices was hindered, and the support for PC costs first strengthened and then flattened.

In terms of demand, the PC consumption pattern has not improved for a long time, and the overall trend has been relatively weak in the previous period. At the end of the year, some export orders were placed in the market, and the overall logic of weak rigid demand procurement continues. The wait-and-see sentiment of industry players is biased. As the holiday approaches, downstream factories are stocking up to maintain production, and buyers are resistant to high priced goods. Therefore, purchasing and chasing price increases should be cautious. The slow circulation of goods in the market has limited changes, and the demand side has poor support for PC spot prices.

Future forecast

After the PC market rose in December, it was sorted out. The upstream bisphenol A market is currently stagnant and consolidating, maintaining support for PC costs. The load of domestic PC aggregation plants has basically leveled off, and the supply remains loose and unchanged. The high level of inventory in the industry has limited changes, and there has been no substantial improvement in supply pressure. The downstream stocking pattern has not changed, making it difficult to drive market trends. Business Society believes that the positive news for raw materials is gradually dissipating, the holiday market is becoming stronger, and Zhejiang Petrochemical has plans to increase its load. It is expected that there will be downward pressure on the PC market in the future, and the market may turn weak and consolidate.

According to the Commodity Market Analysis System of Shengyi Society, the domestic natural rubber spot market has been fluctuating and consolidating since December. As of December 31, the spot rubber market in China was around 16890 yuan/ton, a decrease of 0.80% from 17027 yuan/ton at the beginning of the month. The high point during the cycle was 17740 yuan/ton, and the low point was 16604 yuan/ton.

The weather in the main production areas of natural rubber continued to improve in early December, and the supply of raw materials from domestic and foreign production areas gradually increased. In the early stage, the price of natural rubber raw materials fell, and the heavy rain in Thailand at the end of the month affected the rubber cutting process. The international price of natural rubber raw materials has rebounded. Overall, the high prices of natural rubber raw materials at home and abroad in December were the main trend, which still provides some support for natural rubber prices. As of December 31st, the purchase price of state-owned and gold rubber water-based concentrated latex raw materials in Hainan production area is around 17200 yuan/ton.

The natural rubber inventory continued to increase in December, which had a bearish impact on the natural rubber market. As of December 29, 2024, the total inventory of Tianjiao bonded and general trade in Qingdao area was 477600 tons, an increase of 54100 tons from 423500 tons at the end of November.

Since December, downstream tire production has remained stable with slight fluctuations, and demand is facing the urgent support of the natural rubber market. As of December 27th, the operating load of semi steel tires in domestic tire enterprises is around 7.9%; The operating load of all steel tires for tire enterprises in Shandong region has increased to about 6.20%.

Market forecast: Currently, domestic and international raw materials are in the peak season for rubber production, and raw material prices may continue to decline slightly in the later period; Under the policy of promoting consumption, all tire enterprises are operating steadily, which provides certain support for natural rubber; But the slight increase in Tianjian inventory has brought certain pressure to the market mentality. Overall, it is expected that the natural rubber market will experience a weak and volatile downward trend in the short term.

Aluminum prices fell 2.9% in December

Aluminum prices remained weak in December, with a slight downward trend. According to the Commodity Market Analysis System of Shengyi Society, as of December 31, 2024, the average price of aluminum ingots in the East China market in China was 19783.33 yuan/ton, a decrease of 2.90% compared to the market average price of 20373.33 yuan/ton on December 1.

In December, the social inventory of aluminum ingots decreased slightly

In December, the social inventory of domestic aluminum ingots decreased slightly. As of December 30th, the social inventory of electrolytic aluminum in the mainstream domestic market was 473000 tons, compared to 553000 tons on November 31st, and 80000 tons were sold out.

Changes in aluminum ingot production capacity in December

In December, some regions reduced production. Sichuan region reduced production due to entering the dry season, with an expected reduction of around 200000 tons. Some enterprises in Guangxi region reduced production slightly due to cost factors. As of December, the operating capacity of the domestic electrolytic aluminum industry was around 43 million tons, an increase of 3% compared to the same period last year.

Downstream demand is expected to weaken

In January, downstream processing enterprises gradually entered the Spring Festival holiday period, and there is a market expectation that the demand for aluminum ingots will weaken.

Expected increase in raw material alumina

Affected by the Guinea factor, the expected supply of bauxite has led to a rebound in the price of raw material alumina, which has a short-term emotional impact on the price of aluminum ingots.

Aluminum prices in January are difficult to be optimistic about

Despite the short-term rise in alumina prices and strong cost support for aluminum prices, it is difficult to be optimistic about aluminum prices in January due to weak demand in the off-season. They are in a sideways range with weak upward momentum and a bottom downward trend, and are expected to mainly fluctuate weakly.

Aluminum prices remained weak in December. According to the Commodity Market Analysis System of Shengyi Society, as of December 30, 2024, the average price of aluminum ingots in the East China market in China was 19713.33 yuan/ton, a decrease of 3.24% compared to the market average price of 20373.33 yuan/ton on December 1.

Three factors contributing to the weak downward trend of aluminum prices in December:

The weak downward trend in aluminum prices in December was mainly caused by three factors. Firstly, aluminum prices rose in early November, reaching a new high for the year. However, the actual demand from downstream terminals was lower than expected, which led to resistance to high priced raw materials and intensified competition in the upstream and downstream of the industrial chain; Secondly, due to the cancellation of export tax rebates for downstream aluminum products, there is an expectation of weakened export demand in the short term. At the same time, there is a strong expectation of tax increases in the United States, which suppresses prices; The third is the main driving force behind the upward trend of aluminum ingots, and the expectation of sustained cost increases is weakening.

List of Domestic Inventory Data for Aluminum Ingots

In December, the total inventory of domestic aluminum ingots decreased slightly. As of December 30th, the social inventory of electrolytic aluminum in the mainstream domestic market was 473000 tons, compared to 553000 tons on November 31st, and 80000 tons were sold out.

1、 Trend analysis

According to monitoring data from Shengyi Society, copper prices first rose and then fell in December. As of the end of the month, the copper price at the beginning of the month was 74036.67 yuan/ton. At the end of the month, the copper price rose to 74243.33 yuan/ton, with an overall increase of 0.28% and a year-on-year increase of 7.17%.

According to the Business Society’s current chart, copper spot prices in December were mostly higher than futures prices, with the main contract being the expected price two months later.

According to LME inventory, LME copper inventory fluctuated narrowly at high levels in December. As of the end of the month, LME copper inventory was 272725 tons, a decrease of 0.74% from the beginning of the month.

Macroscopically, towards the end of 2024, the US economy has shown some resilience, with a decrease in the number of first-time applicants for unemployment benefits, which has brought a touch of warmth to the market. According to data released by the US Department of Labor on Thursday, the number of people applying for unemployment benefits fell to 219000 in the week ending December 21, lower than market expectations of 225000 and a decrease from the previous week’s 220000. The current unemployment rate of 4.2% appears relatively moderate in the context of the past decade, indicating that the US economy has maintained a relatively stable development trend in the uncertain overall environment.

Supply and demand side: The expectation of tight copper mine supply continues to exist, and the growth rate of refined copper production will slow down. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, China’s electrolytic copper production in November was 1.133 million tons, a year-on-year decrease of 1.6%; The cumulative production of electrolytic copper from January to November was 12.451 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 4.6%. In terms of consumption, although December is the traditional off-season, it is expected that this year’s off-season will not be weak, which will have a certain impact on copper prices.

Overall, strong economic data from the United States supports the US dollar, putting pressure on copper prices; The domestic macro situation is improving, and the continuous decline in Shanghai copper inventory provides support for copper prices. In the short term, copper is expected to fluctuate and maintain stability.