The first quarter of 2018 has already ended. The first quarter of the titanium dioxide market is very 'lively'. First, the price adjustments of titanium dioxide manufacturers have continued to stimulate the nerves of the upstream and downstream market players. In the first quarter, more than 40 price increases were issued. Some companies issued 2-4 price-raising letters in the first quarter. Although actual transactions did not disclose as much as price increases, they also laid the foundation for the steady rise of titanium dioxide in the first quarter. The transaction volume was 17,000-18,000 yuan/ton; the mainstream sales of anatase titanium dioxide were between 14000-15000 yuan/ton.
Second, under the influence of the traditional Chinese New Year effect, pre-holiday market participants actively stocked the market. After the holiday period, the inventory was mainly digested. The market entered a short-term bland period. Before the Spring Festival, affected by the snowfall of various regions, the logistics company had a holiday in advance. Northwest, Southwest, etc. January 26 Daily logistics stopped operating, and other provinces and cities were mostly shut down before the end of January, causing the market to enter a tight delivery period. After the holiday season, under the influence of rising prices of raw materials and a sharp appreciation of the RMB, the market for titanium dioxide began to snap back. The situation is good; but due to environmental protection factors, the domestic downstream industry started to recover slowly, and domestic demand was insufficient.
The third is the Sino-US trade war that affects the world economic situation. If the Sino-U.S. trade war continues to escalate, it will have an 'epic' impact on the economies of the two countries. In terms of the titanium dioxide industry, Sino-US trade war will further force titanium dioxide. Industry transformation and upgrading. Although China's titanium dioxide industry is developing rapidly, it is a major exporter of titanium dioxide. However, due to the imbalance in the industrial structure of titanium dioxide in China, the main production capacity is concentrated on the production of sulfuric acid process titanium dioxide. The proportion of titanium dioxide production by chlorination is only 6%. %, still need a lot of imports every year.
From January to December 2017, China's total exports of titanium dioxide were 831 thousand tons, of which 46,000 tons were exported to the United States, accounting for only 5.56%; other important export regions were India, South Korea, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Brazil. Total imports of titanium dioxide in China from January to December 2017 were 215,000 tons, of which 34,500 tons were imported from the United States, accounting for 16%. Other important sources of imports were Taiwan Province of China, Australia, Mexico, Germany, Japan, etc. China’s trade war between China and the United States is gradually escalating. It will further force the upgrading and transformation of domestic titanium dioxide enterprises and increase the investment in chlorination of titanium dioxide production capacity to reduce dependence on foreign imports.
Fourth, the export volume of titanium dioxide continued to grow. According to customs statistics, in February 2018, China exported 70145.79 tons of titanium dioxide, which was a year-on-year increase of 34.51%, an increase of 1.51% from the previous month. The average export price in February was US$2,517.48 per ton. Cumulative total export volume was 13,9249.2 tons, which was 25% higher than the same period of last year. The top three export countries were India, Brazil, and Italy; the top three export regions were Shandong, Henan, and Sichuan.
In February 2018, the import volume of titanium dioxide in China was 8647.08 tons, a year-on-year decrease of 53.6%, a decrease of 57% from the previous month, and the average import price in February was 3,160.95 USD/ton; the cumulative import volume in January and February was 28,788.89 tons, a 21% decrease from the same period of last year. The top three regions for import are Australia, the United States, and Mexico. The top three regions for import are Shanghai, Guangdong Province, and Zhejiang Province.
In terms of output, the production of titanium dioxide in the first quarter was more than 600,000 tons, and it is expected that the export volume will account for one-third of the total. It can be seen that China’s titanium dioxide has been increasingly influential in the world. From the perspective of long-term development, the chlorination of titanium dioxide is a development. The trend, China's chlorinated titanium dioxide supply gap is still very large. In the "Thirteenth Five-Year" supply-side reform policy guidelines, in the next 3-5 years, China's titanium dioxide will enter a period of rapid development.