（April 22, 2026）Recently, the domestic fumed silica (precipitated silica, fumed silica) industry has seen new developments in market operations, project construction, and technological innovation. With the completion of the earlier price increase for raw materials, the continuous recovery in demand from downstream tire and silicone rubber industries, and the intensive advancement of new green and low-carbon projects, the industry as a whole is experiencing a pattern of stable prices at high levels, a shortage of high-end products, increasing exports, and rapid clearance of low-end capacity. The pace of transformation towards higher-end, greener, and more intelligent industries is continuing to accelerate.

In terms of market prices, as of April 22nd according to the latest data, due to the earlier tight supply of sulfur and the significant surge in sulfuric acid raw material prices, price adjustments by fumed silica manufacturers in major production areas such as Shandong, Fujian, and Jiangxi have all been implemented. The industry has now entered a phase of stable operation at high levels. The current mainstream transaction price for ordinary rubber-grade fumed silica produced by the precipitation method is stable between 6300-7000 RMB per ton; high-dispersity fumed silica specifically for silicone rubber is priced at 6800-8000 RMB per ton; high-end fumed silica produced by the fumed method remains at high levels, with a mainstream price range of 16000-32000 RMB per ton. There is a shortage of high-end fumed silica with high specific surface area grades, resulting in significant bargaining room for buyers.Compared to the end of 2025, the cumulative increase in all product categories has reached 12%-18%, with strong support from the cost side, and there is no clear downward trend in the market.

The pace of project investment and construction continues to accelerate, and the production capacity for new types of green processes in China is constantly expanding. At the beginning of this month, a carbon dioxide acidification method for producing white carbon black project in Weifang, Shandong, with a total investment of 1.02 billion yuan, completed its preliminary public notice. The project will be constructed in three phases, with the first phase expected to produce 60,000 tons per year and be completed and put into operation by February 2027. The new process uses carbon dioxide instead of traditional sulfuric acid for acidification, significantly reducing carbon emissions and waste discharge during production, which is in line with the industry's green development direction. At the same time, many companies in China have started environmental upgrades for old production lines, phasing out energy-consuming and outdated coal-fired heating equipment and promoting the intelligent transformation of production lines. Jiangsu's latest industrial policy has explicitly restricted non-green process facilities and eliminated low-end white carbon black production capacity of less than 15,000 tons per year, further deepening the optimization of the industry's production capacity structure.

Foreign trade exports have performed outstandingly, with the competitiveness of domestically produced high-end products continuously increasing. Since April, there has been a noticeable rebound in manufacturing activities globally and a return of overseas orders. Export orders for high-dispersity white carbon black, food-grade, and electronic-grade special white carbon black have increased by more than 20% year-on-year, with Europe, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East being the core markets for growth.Relying on a complete domestic silicon-based industrial chain, stable production capacity supply, and technological advantages, China's position as a hub in the global silica supply chain has been further consolidated, while the export gap for high-end products continues to widen.

Innovations in the technical field are continuously driving industrial upgrading. The industrialization of new micro-channel continuous reaction processes in the industry is accelerating; compared to the traditional batch precipitation method, the silica produced by these new processes has a more uniform particle size distribution, which can effectively reduce tire rolling resistance by 12%-15% while maintaining good grip in wet conditions, perfectly meeting both domestic tire green energy efficiency standards and strict EU export requirements. Industry white papers predict that by 2028, the proportion of new green continuous production capacity globally will exceed 45%, becoming the mainstream technical approach.

Industry experts analyze that the silica industry has moved beyond simple price competition and entered a structural development cycle driven by demand growth. Emerging applications such as new energy tires, high-end silicone rubber, 5G thermal conductive materials, and food and pharmaceuticals are seeing sustained demand expansion. Coupled with stricter environmental policies and increasing trade barriers overseas, domestic companies will continue to focus on the development of products with high dispersion, special functions, and low-carbon manufacturing processes. Vertical integration and clustering of the industrial chain are expected to become the mainstream trends in the industry.