Titanium dioxide: market analysis in the first quarter of 2022

1、 Price analysis

In the first quarter of 2022, there were two rounds of price increases in China, with a price increase range of 600-100 yuan / ton, but the final implementation of the recent two rounds of price increases was not ideal. The international titanium dioxide giants have sent letters to raise the market price, which may lead to the improvement of the domestic market. Superposition tenor announced that the company is currently facing force majeure events. Due to the temporary production difficulties caused by mechanical failure, and the current mechanical failure can not be met and controlled, the production of international titanium dioxide manufacturers will be affected, which may benefit the domestic titanium dioxide market. Since the price rose sharply in 2021, the market quotation has remained stable, the acceptance of the downstream market is not high, and the actual transaction price of titanium dioxide is low. With the inventory digestion of downstream enterprises, the market inquiry increased in late February after the Spring Festival holiday. In addition, most semi process enterprises did not start work. In the later stage, due to the superposition of epidemic reasons, the transportation was not smooth, and the market transaction price was mainly high.

2、 Analysis of output and unit operation

According to incomplete statistics, the cumulative output of titanium dioxide from January to March 2022 in the first quarter was about 1037300 tons, an increase of 11% over the same period last year, and the output increased by about 106700 tons. In the first quarter, the titanium dioxide market was affected by the maintenance of various devices, and the operation was insufficient. Jinan Yuxing, one line was shut down in February and planned to start at the end of the month; Yunnan daxiaotong single line production in January, with a plan of about 20 days; Two kilns of Shandong Dongjia old factory in February were shut down for maintenance; Panzhihua haifengxin's shutdown and overhaul plan in January is about 15 days; In January and February, there were 4 kilns in Ma'anshan of CNNC, and 3 kilns maintained production; Longmang Xiangyang stopped production for maintenance on February 3. It is estimated that the output of Longbai Jiaozuo sulfuric acid method in January is 22557 tons and that of chlorination method is about 20600 tons. The 100000 ton old plant of Lubei chemical stopped production on March 23. It is expected that other manufacturers will start work normally in about a month. At present, the start-up of the industry is still more than 80%, and the market supply is stable. CITIC titanium's 60000 ton new plant is in normal production and is expected to reach full load in May. The commissioning time of Guizhou Shengwei new plant is expected to be postponed to May.

3、 Future forecast

The plant of the enterprise is relatively stable, and each manufacturer overhauled and stopped production due to force majeure. The cost side support of raw and auxiliary materials, the price of sulfuric acid rose nationwide, and the low-end price of titanium ore fell; The market sent letters one after another, and the market inquiry increased. However, the market situation is less than expected, the overall construction of the downstream has yet to be recovered, the demand is slightly weak, and the dealers hold a wait-and-see attitude towards the future market. It is expected that the short-term titanium dioxide market will be deadlocked.