HIIR Market Price Hit a New Low in 2020
In the first half of 2020, China’s HIIR market price rebounded after falling to a low point. Taking Russia 232 as an example, in the first half of 2020, its price peaked at the beginning of 2020, at RMB 22,000/mt, and the lowest price appeared at the beginning of June, at RMB 16,000 /mt, with the biggest drop of 27.2%. In the first half of 2020, the price of some Chinese-made IIR grades fell below RMB 13,500/mt. The main reason for the price decline was the tepid demand affected by the global public health event. First, there was a large proportion of downstream tires and inner tubes to be exported, and the severe pandemic in foreign countries and regions had a significant impact on the export market, resulting in a significant decline in demand. Second, the demand for downstream pharmaceutical stoppers was also affected by the pandemic to a certain extent. Although the outbreak of the pandemic brought about an increase in protective equipment such as masks and gloves, the pandemic also reduced the public’s expectation of care-seeking, so the pharmaceutical stopper industry performed poorly.
In the third quarter of 2020, the HIIR price rose. In the early stage, China’s IIR producers sold goods at low prices, and their inventory pressure was relieved significantly. In the later stage, the cost increased, so producers and traders were reluctant to sell goods at low prices. Besides, the operating rates at downstream tire enterprises were high in the third quarter of 2020, so the consumption volume of HIIR was passable. By the middle of September, the price of HIIR 2222 was RMB 18,200-18,600/mt, the price of 2030 was RMB 19,000/mt, and the price of Chinese-made goods was RMB 16,000-17,000/mt.
