According to China Business News, Longba Group (002601.SZ) recently announced price adjustments for all its titanium dioxide products, raising domestic prices by RMB700 per ton and international prices by USD100 per ton. Additionally, multiple titanium dioxide producers including Ananda (002136.SZ) and Daon Titanium Industry have followed suit with price hikes.

This round of adjustments is primarily driven by the sustained rise in sulfuric acid prices, with procurement costs in most production areas reaching RMB 900-1000 per ton. Currently, approximately 18 titanium dioxide manufacturers have announced price increases.

Rising Costs

Following Longba Group, Ananda announced on November 27 that it would raise the domestic base price for rutile-type and anatase-type titanium dioxide by RMB700 per ton, while increasing the export base price by 100 USD per ton. On the same day, Daon Titanium Industry also announced a 700 RMB/ton increase for domestic sales and a 100 USD/ton increase for international sales.

While some companies saw a slight increase in orders after the price hike, end-user demand has not substantially recovered. This round of price adjustments primarily reflects cost-driven pressures. Although titanium ore prices declined earlier, the excessive surge in sulfuric acid costs has not effectively alleviated corporate cost burdens. Compounded by planned maintenance shutdowns for some production lines next month, the industry faces significant operational pressure. Raw material prices are expected to remain elevated, potentially leaving room for further modest increases in titanium dioxide prices.

SunSirs notes that multiple titanium dioxide producers have recently issued price hike notices, primarily driven by soaring upstream raw material costs, energy expenses, and environmental compliance expenditures. The market is expected to stabilize with a positive outlook in the short term, though actual transactions will continue to be negotiated on a case-by-case basis.

Business Monitor data shows that since October 20, domestic sulfuric acid prices have entered a rapid upward trajectory, accumulating a rise of over 50% with a 28.7% increase in November alone. Currently, the average price for 98% sulfuric acid in the East China market stands at 967 RMB/ton. Factory-gate prices in Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions have reached 1,200 RMB/ton, while quotations in Shandong are around 850 RMB/ton.

SunSirs note that this price hike may alleviate corporate profit pressures and boost sector performance to some extent. However, its sustainability remains contingent on downstream demand absorption. Currently, downstream sectors such as coatings, plastics, and papermaking remain in their off-season. The sluggish real estate market has led to insufficient production capacity utilization in the coatings industry, with downstream enterprises primarily purchasing based on essential needs and showing limited acceptance of high-priced raw materials.

Performance Under Pressure

Since the beginning of this year, the titanium dioxide industry has been performing poorly overall, with some companies experiencing a “double decline” in both revenue and profits.

On October 27, Longji Group's Q3 2025 report revealed that in the first three quarters, the company achieved operating revenue of RMB 19.436 billion, down 6.86% year-on-year; net profit attributable to shareholders was RMB 1.674 billion, down 34.68% year-on-year; and non-recurring net profit attributable to shareholders was RMB 1.618 billion, down 35.97% year-on-year.

Ananda saw its net profit attributable to shareholders turn from profit to loss in the first three quarters, with a loss of 46.369 million RMB, a year-on-year decrease exceeding 213%.

An Ananda representative admitted in an interview with reporters: “The main reasons for the pressure on the company's performance are the current unfavorable market conditions for titanium dioxide and iron phosphate, coupled with a significant increase in sulfuric acid prices on the cost side in the first half of the year.”

In the third quarter of 2025, the average price of titanium dioxide continued its downward trend from the second quarter. Although prices rebounded in September, the recovery was limited due to weaker-than-expected growth in end-user demand, resulting in an overall sequential decline in average prices.

Data shows that the average market price of titanium dioxide in the third quarter was RMB 12,992 per ton, down 8.92% quarter-on-quarter and 14.21% year-on-year. Monthly averages throughout the quarter hit five-year lows. Specifically, titanium dioxide prices gradually declined from 13,400 RMB/ton at the quarter's start to 12,850 RMB/ton by late August. Although prices rose slightly to 13,000 RMB/ton in September, this failed to reverse the overall downward trend.

While titanium dioxide production costs in Q3 remained largely unchanged from Q2, product prices dropped by RMB 1,300 per ton, further deepening corporate losses. Amid fierce market competition, companies prioritized consolidating or expanding market share to avoid losing both profits and market presence. Consequently, despite entering the peak season, domestic titanium dioxide producers raised prices to stimulate shipments. However, most orders were still fulfilled at pre-increase price levels, indicating that companies primarily aimed to move inventory.

As an integrated internet platform providing benchmark prices, on December 1st, the benchmark price of titanium dioxide from SunSirs was 13,500.00 RMB/ton, a decrease of 2.6% compared to the beginning of the previous month (13,860.00 RMB/ton).

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