Price trend

According to the commodity market analysis system of SunSirs, 85% of domestic industrial-grade formic acid has been performing weakly recently. As of September 22, the benchmark price of formic acid on SunSirs was 3,100 RMB/ton, unchanged from the previous week, and at the median price for the year.

Fundamentals: Dual pressures of oversupply and weak demand

On the supply side, output remained stable, with the operating rate of major domestic enterprises remaining above 70%. However, planned maintenance at the Liaocheng factory failed to proceed as planned, and market expectations of a supply contraction were dashed. As of September 18, inventory levels at major enterprises began to come under pressure, with some companies experiencing inventory cycles exceeding 15 days.

Demand side: Structural differentiation under weak recovery

Traditional fields: Agriculture was in a period of seasonal adjustment, and the demand for feed additives was weak; the leather and textile industries were affected by sluggish terminal consumption, and the operating rate was less than 60%.

Emerging fields: Demand for environmentally friendly materials, biodiesel catalysts, etc. has increased, but the scale was small and it was difficult to offset the weakness in traditional fields.

Export market: Export orders were strong in August (large Shandong factories have orders scheduled until September), but new orders in September were flat, with the main players executing previous backlog orders, which weakened the support for the market.

Market outlook

SunSirs’ formic acid data analysts believe that the formic acid market is characterized by "oversupply, weak demand, and price pressure." In the short term, the imbalance between supply and demand is unlikely to improve fundamentally, and prices may continue to fluctuate weakly. Specific market changes still need to be monitored.

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