Over the past week (April 8–14), the PA6 market experienced a trend characterized by an initial surge followed by a subsequent retreat. The SunSirs benchmark price touched its annual peak of 14,600 RMB/ton on April 13 (a 3.55% increase from the beginning of the month); however, it subsequently fell back rapidly, closing at 14,133.33 RMB/ton on April 14—a 3.20% decline from the previous day—thereby erasing most of its recent gains.
Cost Side: During the first half of the week, the supply of caprolactam—the core raw material for PA6—remained relatively tight. On April 7, Sinopec announced a significant upward adjustment to its weekly settlement price for caprolactam, raising it by 1,120 RMB/ton to 14,030 RMB/ton—an increase of approximately 8.7%. This move directly drove up PA6 production costs and fueled strong bullish sentiment within the market. However, cost-side support began to loosen in the latter half of the week. On April 13, Sinopec released its latest weekly settlement price for caprolactam, lowering it to 13,800 RMB/ton—a reduction of 230 RMB/ton from the previous period. This directly eroded cost-side support for PA6 and dampened the market's bullish expectations.
Supply and Demand Side: The supply side exhibited a distinctly loose trend, exerting significant downward pressure on prices. Overall supply remained consistently ample. Notably, price quotes from numerous enterprises explicitly included the stipulation "actual transaction prices are negotiable." This indicates that there is room for downward bargaining on actual成交 prices, reflecting a strong willingness among suppliers to offload inventory and a lack of sustained upward momentum for prices.
Overall demand remained sluggish. Although downstream textile and chemical fiber industries have resumed operations, their tolerance for high-priced raw materials remains limited. Procurement activities are primarily driven by "immediate replenishment of essential needs" and "buying as needed," rather than concentrated stockpiling; consequently, the trading atmosphere remains cautious. The 2025 Annual Report and the Q1 2026 Report from Juheshun reveal that the industry is deeply mired in a predicament of oversupply—stemming from the concentrated release of production capacity—and weak downstream demand, resulting in widespread losses across the entire sector.
Short-Term Outlook: In the short term, the PA6 market is expected to maintain a pattern of weak, volatile fluctuations, with the overall price center trending downward. On the cost side, Sinopec has already lowered its caprolactam prices; moreover, persistently high operating rates within the industry continue to exert downward pressure on pricing. Barring any new catalysts for price hikes in raw materials, cost-side support is expected to weaken further. Regarding demand, until there is a noticeable pickup in end-market orders, downstream players are unlikely to show any significant increase in their willingness to restock; consequently, trading activity is highly likely to remain sluggish.
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