Shenhua Auction: No sign of demand recovery as market stays cautious
The resumption of trading post-holiday brought no relief to Shenhua. The auction session was marked by sluggish participation, particularly for LLDPE, where deal volumes reached just 1%
Shenhua Baotou Coal Chemical Co., China’s largest coal-based petrochemical producer, concluded its auction on 06 May 2025, with the results for prime grades as follows:
|
Product |
Auction Volume |
Deal Volume |
Auction Prices |
Deal Prices |
Deal % |
||
|
CNY/ton |
USD/ton |
CNY/ton |
USD/ton |
||||
|
Combined and reported by CommoPlast |
|||||||
|
PPH Yarn |
1350 |
762 |
7020 |
$859 |
7100-7270 |
$869-890 |
56.4% |
|
LL Film |
500 |
5 |
7250 |
$887 |
7250 |
$887 |
1.0% |
|
*Auction and Deal volumes are in tonnage *All USD equivalent prices only exclude the 13% value-added tax (VAT). They have not taken into account other costs that might incur in the selling process, i.e. import duty, customs clearances. |
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Auction platform: https://www.e-chnenergy.com
Auction time: Monday – Friday, 10 AM – 12 PM
Key takeaways:
The resumption of trading post-holiday brought no relief to Shenhua. The auction session was marked by sluggish participation, particularly for LLDPE, where deal volumes reached just 1% of the offered quantity. This stark contrast to PPH Yarn, which recorded a modest deal rate of 56.4%, highlights the uneven demand dynamics across product segments.
Market participants cited continued pressure from weak crude oil futures and a subdued Dalian Commodity Exchange as key deterrents to procurement activity. Downstream demand remains anaemic, with many converters yet to return to full operations amid a scarcity of end-product orders.
Industry sources noted that the bearish sentiment at Shenhua’s auction mirrors conditions in the broader domestic spot market. Without a decisive breakthrough in the US-China trade negotiations or substantial policy stimulus from Beijing, the outlook for a demand recovery remains bleak in the short term.
Written: Kat Yun Yun
Edited: Rochelle Nguyen