Carbon

Recent Market Dynamics of Activated CarbonI. Price Trends1. **Domestic Market**: Recently, domestic activated carbon prices have generally maintained a stable and slightly firm trend. Due to rising raw material costs, some manufacturers have increased their quoted prices for wood-based activated carbon by 5%-8%. Coal-based activated carbon prices, influenced by fluctuations in the coal market, have seen slight increases of 2%-3% in certain regions.2. **International Market**: International activated carbon prices have generally risen due to increased energy costs and transportation expenses. Export quotes, particularly in the North American and European markets, have increased by approximately 5%-10%.II. Supply and Demand1. **Supply Side**: - The operating rate of domestic activated carbon enterprises remains stable, with some facing production capacity constraints due to environmental restrictions or tight raw material supply. - Imports of activated carbon have decreased, especially for high-end varieties, due to rising international logistics costs.2. **Demand Side**: - Demand in the water treatment industry is steadily growing, particularly in industrial wastewater treatment and municipal sewage treatment sectors. - Demand in the air purification sector is influenced by seasonal factors, with the summer peak in air conditioning usage driving increased demand for air purification activated carbon. - Demand for high-quality activated carbon remains strong in the food & beverage and pharmaceutical industries.III. Raw Material Market1. **Wood-based Raw Materials**: Affected by forestry policies, the supply of wood-based raw materials is tight, with prices continuing to rise, thereby increasing the production costs of wood-based activated carbon.2. **Coal-based Raw Materials**: Coal prices have fluctuated significantly but show an overall upward trend, leading to increased production costs for coal-based activated carbon.3. **Chemical Raw Materials**: Prices for chemical raw materials such as activating agents remain stable, having a minimal impact on activated carbon costs.IV. Policy and Environmental Protection1. Domestic environmental policies continue to tighten, imposing stricter emission standards on activated carbon producers. Some enterprises have been subject to production limits or shutdowns due to non-compliance with environmental standards.2. In international trade, activated carbon exports must meet stricter environmental standards, requiring some enterprises to adjust their production processes to comply.V. Analysis and Judgment1. **Cost Push**: Rising raw material costs are the primary driver of increased activated carbon prices, with wood-based activated carbon being more significantly affected by tight raw material supply.2. **Demand Support**: Steady growth in demand from sectors such as water treatment and air purification provides support for activated carbon prices.3. **Supply Constraints**: Environmental production limits and tight raw material supply have restricted the production capacity of some enterprises, resulting in a relatively tight market supply.VI. Forecasts1. **Short-term** (1-3 months): Activated carbon prices are expected to remain stable and slightly firm. Price increases for wood-based activated carbon may be greater than those for coal-based activated carbon.2. **Medium-term** (3-6 months): If raw material prices continue to rise or environmental policies tighten further, activated carbon prices may continue to increase, although the magnitude of increases will be constrained by the demand side.3. **Long-term** (more than 6 months): With improvements in environmental protection technology and stabilization of raw material supply, activated carbon prices are expected to gradually return to a reasonable range, although prices for high-quality activated carbon will likely remain at elevated levels.