The Rise of Guide Prices of APT Boosts Tungsten Market

Analysis of latest tungsten market in China from Chinatungsten Online: The second guide price of APT in December was released by Xiamen Tungsten yesterday, which was $294/mtu, up $5.3/mtu on the month. The rise in guide prices stimulates the enthusiasm for raising prices in the raw material market and mainstream product prices continue to maintain good momentum. Some smelters expressed that it is hard to get APT when price is lower than $298/mtu.

In the tungsten concentrate market, there have more than one factor affecting the production of mines. The fist one is the environmental protection inspection that forces some miners to stop production. Work suspension before New Year's Day and falling temperatures in the winter also limit the rate of operation. Moreover, the tax law of environmental protection will be implemented in 2018, and small mines may be hard to reproduce again. The continuous shortage of raw material boosts insiders’ bullish mentality. Tungsten concentrate price is expected to rise.

Raw material price keeps rising, and thus downstream smelting enterprises are optimistic about the late market. Some middlemen believe that if upstream market continues to maintain the current situation, downstream market will finally accept the rise with support of consumption in previous stocks and rigid demand. However, what needs to be concerned it that the environmental protection and season factors also influence downstream market’s operating rate. Besides, price rise forces downstream market to improve the use rate of regenerated materials. After the release of substantive needs in terminal market, the willingness of purchasing will be weak, and then further limits the space of rise.

Taken together, affected by the increase of production costs and good expectation of large enterprises, domestic tungsten price is expected to be in an upward trend in the short term. While the deadlocked supply and demand will continue, insiders should be cautious in their operations.

Prices of tungsten products on Dec. 19, 2017

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