Manganese flake prices rise further
2007-03-08 08:44:37 【Print】
BEIJING (Asian Metal) 8 Mar 07 – Manganese flake prices rise further in China despite some participants have started to worry about the reverse of the market. Many smelters suspend quoting as no spot materials are in stock while some others offer as high as RMB12,700-12,800/t (USD1,641-1,654/t) ex works for spot sales and claimed that only limited quantities of materials are available.
One of the major Guangxi-based smelters is not offering for manganese flake at the moment as supply is tight and it cannot serve any new orders. Running with the output of over 20,000tpy, the smelter is well booked for the month and some orders have also been signed with shipment in early April.
“We’re fulfilling those signed contracts and do not want to accept more new orders as the market situation is likely to change three or four weeks later,” said the source.
The source reported that concluded prices for manganese flake have been on the rise to current RMB12,600-12,700/t (USD1,627-1,641/t) ex works for domestic sales, and few exporters would like to sell below USD2,100/t FOB.
A trader from East China confirmed the same situation and revealed that smelters are still busy raising offers.
“We got offers which are in a large range of USD2,130-2,200/t FOB lately from smelters, but foreign buyers complained and said they are not ready to buy at such high prices,” said the source.
With several inquiries on hand, the source does not dare to conclude deals for fear that either smelters or buyers breach the contracts if the market situation changes.
As many other participants, the source believes that the market will keep firm till the end of this month.
