-
We detected your language preference as English. Would you like to switch to the English version for a better experience?
Switch to English
Stay here
China and India are the leading exporters of oxalic acid, accounting for a substantial majority of global shipments, while the United States, Germany, and South Korea are the largest importers. Oxalic acid prices have remained relatively stable amid consistent demand from metal treatment, textile, and rare-earth processing sectors. Exports from China have shown modest growth over the past two years, while Indian exports have plateaued, and U.S. imports have increased slightly despite domestic production capacity.
Market Dynamics Report on Oxalic Acid
I. Price Trends
1. Domestic Market: The domestic oxalic acid market has recently shown a slight upward fluctuation. The quoted price for mainstream 95% industrial-grade oxalic acid ranges from 3,800 to 4,200 RMB/ton, representing an increase of approximately 2%-3% compared to the beginning of the month. Prices for some high-end refined oxalic acid remain stable in the 4,500-4,800 RMB/ton range, supported by demand from downstream fine chemical industries.
2. International Market: International oxalic acid prices are influenced by exchange rates and shipping costs. The FOB price at major Chinese ports is between 520-560 USD/ton, up about 1.5% from last month. Main export destinations include India, Southeast Asia, and Europe and America, with demand primarily driven by the pharmaceutical and rare earth separation sectors.
II. Supply and Demand Dynamics
1. Supply Side:
- The domestic capacity utilization rate for oxalic acid is approximately 75%, an increase of 2 percentage points from last month, mainly due to the resumption of production by some enterprises after maintenance. However, local supply remains tight in Southwest China due to environmental restrictions.
- Regarding new capacity, a company in Shandong plans to commission a 50,000-ton/year oxalic acid plant in the second half of the year, but its short-term impact on the market is expected to be limited.
2. Demand Side:
- Traditional demand sectors (pharmaceutical intermediates, rare earth smelting, textile printing and dyeing) remain stable, accounting for about 70% of total demand.
- Demand in the new energy sector has grown significantly, with oxalic acid consumption for lithium iron phosphate precursors increasing by 15% year-on-year, becoming the main source of demand growth.
- Export demand is affected by overseas inventory cycles; with the end of the monsoon season in India, infrastructure projects have resumed, driving an increase in oxalic acid imports.
III. Costs and Profits
1. Raw Material Costs: The price of the main raw material, sodium carbonate, remains high (around 2,800 RMB/ton). Sulfur prices have seen a slight increase due to international market fluctuations, pushing up oxalic acid production costs by approximately 3%.
2. Industry Profits: The industry's average gross margin is approximately 15%-18%, down by 1 percentage point from last month, mainly because the transmission of cost pressures lags behind price adjustments.
IV. Inventory and Logistics
1. Inventory Levels: Domestic social inventory of oxalic acid is approximately 12,000 tons, at a historically medium-low level. Some traders are showing a reluctance to sell.
2. Logistics Impact: Typhoon weather in East China has reduced port loading and unloading efficiency, causing delays in local deliveries, but without substantive impact on overall supply.
V. Policies and Industry Dynamics
1. Environmental Policies: Jiangsu, Shandong, and other regions have strengthened environmental supervision in chemical parks, limiting the operating rates of some small and medium-sized enterprises and further increasing industry concentration.
2. Industry Events: A large oxalic acid enterprise suspended external sales due to technical upgrades, reducing the available circulating goods in the market and exacerbating short-term supply-demand contradictions.
VI. Analysis and Judgment
1. Short-term (1-2 months): Affected by tight supply and cost support, oxalic acid prices are expected to maintain an upward oscillating trend, with a rise of about 2%-4%. However, progress in new capacity commissioning and downstream purchasing rhythms need to be monitored.
2. Medium-term (3-6 months): The continued growth in the new energy sector will offset seasonal fluctuations in traditional demand, and the price center is expected to move up to the 4,000-4,500 RMB/ton range.
3. Risk Factors: Significant fluctuations in raw material prices, unexpected tightening of environmental policies, and unexpected declines in overseas demand.
VII. Forecasts
1. Price Range: The mainstream domestic price of oxalic acid in the third quarter is expected to operate in the range of 3,900-4,300 RMB/ton, while the international FOB price is expected to be between 530-580 USD/ton.
2. Demand Structure: The proportion of demand in the new energy sector will rise to 25%, becoming the key factor driving price trends.
3. Competitive Landscape: Leading enterprises will further expand their market share due to cost and scale advantages, squeezing the survival space of small and medium-sized enterprises.
Oxalic acid is a white, crystalline solid at room temperature, odorless and highly soluble in water; it decomposes before boiling and melts at approximately 189–191 °C (with decomposition). It is a simple dicarboxylic acid and classified as an organic chemical intermediate. Oxalic acid serves primarily as a chelating agent, reducing agent, and catalyst in industrial processes, and is widely used in metal cleaning, rust removal, and textile bleaching. It functions as a key intermediate in the synthesis of rare-earth oxalate precursors for catalysts and phosphors, and finds application in dye manufacturing, pharmaceutical synthesis, and polymer production.
1. Oxalic acid can be mainly used as reducing agent and bleaching agent, mordant for dyeing and printing industry, also used in refining rare metal, the synthesis of various oxalate ester amide, oxalate and grass, etc. 2. Used as analytical reagent. 3. Used as laboratory reagents, chromatography analysis reagent, dye intermediates and standard material. 4. Oxalic acid is mainly used for producing drugs such as antibiotics and borneol and solvent for extracting the rare metal, reducing agent and dye, tanning agent, etc. In addition, oxalic acid can also be used for the synthesis of various kinds of oxalate ester, oxalate, and oxamide with diethyl oxalate, sodium oxalate and calcium oxalate having the largest yield. Oxalate can also be used for the production of cobalt-molybdenum-alumina catalyst, cleaning of metal and marble as well as the bleaching of textiles.
This chemical is included in Fine Chemicals. See more about what is Oxalic acid and Oxalic acid SDS information.
Find Oxalic acid supply and Oxalic acid suppliers on Guidechem to meet your sourcing needs from 1348 trusted and certifedsuppliers.
Guidechem assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors or omissions in the content of this site. The information contained in this site is provided on an “as is” basis with no guarantees of completeness, accuracy, usefulness, fitness for purpose or timeliness.
EN
