(May 10, 2026) Recently, the market price of domestic silica core raw materials has gradually stabilized, and the quotations of key raw materials such as sodium silicate and sulfuric acid have fallen back to a reasonable range, effectively alleviating the cost pressure of silica producers, promoting the overall operating rate of the industry to remain high, maintaining a balanced market supply and demand pattern, and continuing to improve the industry operation trend.
The reporter learned from the domestic chemical raw materials trading platform that since May, the market quotation of sodium silicate (water glass), the core raw material of silica, has continued to fall, and the current mainstream quotation has remained at 1280-1350 yuan/ton, down 6.8% from the high point in mid-April and 3.2% from the same period last year; The sulfuric acid market quotation was stable at 380-420 yuan/ton, flat month-on-month and down 5.7% year-on-year. It is estimated that the current production cost per ton of silica has decreased by about 80-100 yuan compared with April, and the profit margin of enterprises has been slightly improved.
As the core raw materials for silica production, the price fluctuations of sodium silicate and sulfuric acid directly affect the production rhythm and cost control of the industry. In the previous quarter, due to factors such as tight supply of raw materials and rising transportation costs, the prices of sodium silicate and sulfuric acid continued to run at a high level, resulting in a surge in cost pressure on silica producers, and some small and medium-sized enterprises experienced a decline in operating rate and insufficient capacity utilization. In late April, with the release of raw material production capacity and smooth transportation channels, the tight supply of raw materials was alleviated, and the price gradually fell back to a reasonable range.
From the perspective of enterprise start-ups, after the pressure on raw material costs eased, the operating rate of domestic silica enterprises rebounded steadily. As of May 10, the average operating rate of the domestic silica industry reached 78.3%, an increase of 5.6 percentage points from mid-April, of which the operating rate of precipitation silica reached 81.2%, and the operating rate of vapor phase silica remained at 72.5%.
Industry cost analysts said that the current stabilization of the raw material market is the core support for the smooth operation of the silica industry, and the supply of raw materials such as sodium silicate and sulfuric acid will remain sufficient in the short term, and the price is likely to remain stable and will not fluctuate significantly. However, at the same time, it is also necessary to pay attention to the price changes of upstream soda ash, sulfur and other raw materials, and their fluctuations may indirectly affect the cost of silica raw materials, which in turn has a certain impact on the operation of the industry.
For the follow-up cost trend, experts predict that the domestic silica raw material market will maintain a stable operation trend in the second quarter, the price fluctuation of core raw materials will be limited, and the cost pressure of silica manufacturers will continue to ease. In this context, the company will further optimize the production process, improve capacity utilization, and at the same time rely on stable cost advantages, reasonably adjust product quotations, promote the continuous balance of the supply and demand pattern of the industry, and help the industry achieve stable and healthy development.
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