Antimony trioxide market remains slow 12.4

The market for 99.5% min antimony trioxide has remained slow over the past week, as enquiries from foreign buyers remained limited, market participants said today.

Prices in the export market generally stayed at the level of $4,480-4,580/tonne FOB, similar with that seen last week, but some business has been reported at a slightly lower level.

A Guangxi based supplier confirmed this. “It was said that some deals have been concluded at $4,460-4,470/tonne FOB.”

“We exported some antimony trioxide at $4,560/tonne FOB late last week, but the quantities were quite limited. I’m hoping that some purchasing activity before Christmas as usual will help the market pick up in the near future,” said a Yunnan based trader.

Meanwhile, the domestic prices for 99.5%min antimony trioxide have been in the range of Rmb35,500-36,500/tonne ($4,535-4,663/tonne) recently according to reports from smelters.

“I haven’t seen any improvement in the spot market. In fact, most deals have been concluded at the lower level of Rmb35,000-36,000/tonne ($4,471-4,600/tonne) and only a few people can get more than Rmb36,000/tonne,” revealed a Hunan based smelter.