In September, the domestic epoxy resin market experienced a temporary upward trend, with an overall monthly increase of 9%, breaking the previous weak and volatile pattern, and the market trading atmosphere significantly rebounded. This month’s market has shown a trend of “steadily rising at the beginning of the month, maintaining high stability in the middle of the month, and slightly loosening at the end of the month”. The overall prosperity of the industry has improved in stages, and the core driving forces for this round of price increases are the support of raw materials, the recovery of rigid demand, and low inventory in the market. From the perspective of comprehensive supply and demand fundamentals and industry trends, it is difficult for the epoxy resin market to continue its unilateral upward trend in the short term, and the future market is likely to show a stable and moderate downward trend with narrow fluctuations.
From the specific market situation in September, the prices of mainstream liquid and solid epoxy resins in China have risen synchronously. The overall monthly increase reached 9%. The industry’s operating rate has steadily rebounded, with most major production enterprises maintaining full or high load production. The overall supply of goods is tight, and some manufacturers have temporarily closed down due to sufficient orders. The limited circulation of spot goods has effectively supported the price increase this month.
The price increase of epoxy resin in this round is not driven by a single factor, but the result of multiple favorable factors such as cost, demand, and inventory. From a cost perspective, the prices of upstream core raw materials bisphenol A and epichlorohydrin stabilized and rebounded in September, and the overall market for chemical raw materials rebounded, providing solid cost support for epoxy resin, compressing the industry’s profit margin, and driving enterprises to raise product quotations.
The recovery of demand side is the key driving force for the upward trend of the market. In September, we entered the traditional peak consumption season of Jinjiu, and downstream demand orders in the fields of coatings, electronics and electrical, composite materials, wind power, etc. were steadily released. With the steady progress of infrastructure projects and the acceleration of manufacturing resumption, downstream enterprises have concentrated their demand for replenishing inventory, changing the previous trend of on-demand procurement and cautious observation. The market transaction activity has significantly increased, effectively digesting on-site supply and helping the market rise. In addition, the overall inventory of the industry is relatively low this year, and manufacturers have no inventory pressure, further consolidating the price increase trend.
As the end of the month approaches, the upward momentum in the market gradually diminishes, and signs of a pullback are beginning to emerge, laying the groundwork for a stable and moderate decline in the future market. On the one hand, the rise in raw material prices has slowed down, with prices of bisphenol A and epichlorohydrin stabilizing and experiencing slight declines in some periods. On the other hand, downstream demand shows a “weak peak season” characteristic, with limited incremental demand for terminal necessities. Downstream enterprises mainly replenish and consume inventory at low prices, with weak willingness to purchase at high prices. The market’s pursuit of price increases has subsided, and trading is gradually returning to rationality.
Looking ahead to the future, the epoxy resin market will be mainly stable with a slight correction, and the overall volatility will be limited. On the supply side, domestic production enterprises maintain high levels of production, and new sources of goods continue to be added. The market supply is gradually easing, and the tight supply pattern will be alleviated. On the demand side, as the traditional peak season comes to an end, terminal demand is gradually cooling down, and the industry’s wait-and-see sentiment is heating up, making it difficult to reproduce the large-scale replenishment market. At the same time, macro market sentiment tends to be cautious, and chemical products as a whole lack unilateral action power.
Overall, there is no significant positive driving force for the epoxy resin market in October. Weakened cost support and weakened demand margins will dominate the market trend, and the market is likely to be stable, weak, and narrow with a very low possibility of significant fluctuations. Mainstream prices will oscillate around a reasonable range.