According to the monitoring of the Commodity Market Analysis System of the Business Society, the price of potassium sulfate with a 50% content at the beginning of this week was 3316 yuan/ton, and the price of potassium sulfate with a 50% content at the end of this week was 3333 yuan/ton, a decrease of 0.50% in price.

The domestic market price of potassium sulfate also continues to rise with the price of potassium chloride, and the number of inquiries for granular potassium sulfate in the northern market has significantly increased. Currently, Mannheim potassium sulfate manufacturers have a large number of pending orders in the early stage, and some factories have continued to accept orders until mid to late September. Currently, the factory price of 50% Mannheim potassium sulfate powder is mostly between 3250 and 3400 yuan/ton, and the factory price of 52% Mannheim potassium sulfate powder is mostly between 3400 and 3600 yuan/ton.

The overall supply of domestic potassium fertilizer sources is relatively tight, with raw material prices continuing to rise and nitrogen fertilizer prices fluctuating. The procurement of raw materials by downstream compound fertilizer factories is slightly difficult, and most factories maintain a “use and collect” model for potassium fertilizer, with cautious factory operations.

Prediction: The domestic potassium fertilizer market is facing tight supply, and it is expected that the market price may mainly show a slight upward trend.

According to data monitored by Business Society, as of August 24th, the price of high-quality power type lithium iron phosphate is 89000 yuan/ton, which is mainly stable compared to the same period last week. Currently, the mainstream price is around 89000 yuan/ton, mainly for contract customers, and new orders are not accepted.

This week, the stable operation of lithium iron phosphate is the main focus. Last week, the price for the same period was 89000 yuan/ton. Currently, the mainstream price is around 89000 yuan/ton, and the overall market is weak and downward. Downstream replenishment is on demand, while upstream lithium carbonate is stable and weak. The cost support for lithium iron phosphate is weak. In the short term, lithium carbonate will maintain its previous trend, and manufacturers will only supply old customers with goods, while new customers will not take orders.

Chemical Commodity Index: On August 23, the chemical index stood at 896 points, an increase of 1 point compared to yesterday, a decrease of 36.00% from the cycle’s highest point of 1400 points (2021-10-23), and an increase of 49.83% from the lowest point of 598 points on April 8, 2020. (Note: The cycle refers to the period from December 1st, 2011 to the present).

Analysts from Business Society believe that the lithium iron phosphate market will operate steadily and weakly in the short term.

Product name: PVC

Latest price: 6176 yuan/ton

Key points of analysis: On August 23rd, the PVC spot market rose, and the upstream calcium carbide market was operating at a high level, with strong cost support. In addition, the upward trend of futures today has further boosted the confidence of the spot market. Overall, the trading sentiment in the PVC spot market has improved, with an increase in inquiries. However, actual order procurement remains cautious, with downstream customers mostly watching and purchasing on demand. Prediction: In the short term, the PVC spot market may continue to lean towards consolidation and operation.

Cobalt prices fluctuated and fell this week

According to the Commodity Market Analysis System of the Business Society, as of August 22, the cobalt price was 261400 yuan/ton, a decrease of 3.44% from the cobalt price of 270700 yuan/ton on August 13; The cobalt price decreased by 8.38% compared to 285300 yuan/ton on August 1st. The arrival of cobalt raw materials in Hong Kong has decreased, and the supply and demand in the cobalt market have decreased. The supply and demand in the cobalt market are both weak, and the cobalt price has fluctuated and fallen this week.

The import volume of cobalt raw materials has decreased

According to the Commodity Market Analysis System of the Business Society, the trend of cobalt prices has continued to decline this week, but this week’s decline has decreased compared to last week’s decline, and the decline in cobalt prices has a contracting trend. Moreover, the cobalt price has hit a bottom of 250000 yuan, and there is limited room for its decline. The cobalt price has a trend of bottoming out and rebounding.

The sales of new energy vehicles have decreased month on month, and the expected demand growth in the cobalt market has decreased. The installed capacity of ternary batteries has increased month on month, but the demand growth in the cobalt market remains the same; The import volume of cobalt raw materials decreased on a month on month basis, and the supply of cobalt in the market is expected to decrease.

Overview and outlook

According to Bai Jiaxin, a data analyst at Business Society, the supply expectation for cobalt in the market has decreased, and demand growth is less than expected. It is expected that the decline in cobalt prices will slow down in the future, with low volatility and consolidation.

1、 Price trend

According to the Commodity Analysis System of Business Society, the domestic market price of isobutyraldehyde has slightly increased this week. This week, the average price of isobutyraldehyde in the mainstream domestic market increased from 8100.00 yuan/ton at the beginning of the week to 8233.33 yuan/ton at the weekend, an increase of 1.65%. Weekend prices increased by 14.88% year-on-year. On August 21, the isobutyraldehyde commodity index was 40.44, a decrease of 1.35 points from yesterday, a decrease of 61.70% from the highest point of 105.58 points in the cycle (2021-09-16), and an increase of 34.26% from the lowest point of 30.12 points on October 7, 2022. (Note: The cycle refers to the period from September 1st, 2021 to present)

2、 Market analysis

From the supply side perspective, the prices of mainstream manufacturers of isobutyraldehyde have slightly increased this week, resulting in low inventory..

From the perspective of the upstream and downstream industry chains, the propylene market in the upstream raw material market of isobutyraldehyde has slightly increased this week, with prices rising from 6788.25 yuan/ton at the beginning of the week to 6813.25 yuan/ton at the weekend, an increase of 0.37%. Weekend prices fell by 3.09% year-on-year. The upstream raw material market prices have slightly increased, with good cost support. Affected by the supply and demand side, it has a positive impact on the price of isobutyraldehyde. From the perspective of the downstream industry chain, the market price of neopentyl glycol has slightly increased, with the market price rising from 9666.67 yuan/ton at the beginning of the week to 9766.67 yuan/ton at the weekend, an increase of 1.03%. The market situation of neopentyl glycol has slightly increased, and downstream demand has increased, which has a positive impact on isobutyraldehyde.

3、 Future prospects

The market trend of isobutyraldehyde in late August may be mainly fluctuating and rising. The upstream propylene market has slightly increased, with good cost support. The downstream neopentyl glycol market has slightly increased, and downstream procurement enthusiasm has increased. Business Society isobutyraldehyde analysts believe that in the short term, the isobutyraldehyde market may experience slight fluctuations and gains due to various factors such as supply and demand and raw materials.