S&P Global Platts reduced the Chinese spot export price for 553-grade 98.5% silicon metal assessment to $2,140-$2,190/mt FOB China basis Thursday, down from $2,180-$2,230/mt last week.
Ther was a wide range of offers Thursday at $2,180-$2,230/mt FOB, with buy ideas at $2,050-$2,180/mt, sources said.
A Zhejiang trader reported selling at $2,150/mt FOB this week, 100-200 mt end-Sep cargoes, to be delivered to Southeast Asia. But the trade could not be confirmed Thursday.
A Xiamen trader quoted $2,230/mt FOB, but said no trades were done as customers said it was too high.
"Prices are all mixed up now depending on individual positions. Some are pressured by high stock levels, and some expect support from environmental inspections and rising power costs. So offers and prices can be very wide ranging," a second Xiamen trader said.
Platts assessed spot Japanese import prices at $2,100-$2,200/mt CIF Japan on Thursday, down from $2,180-$2,230/mt CIF Japan a week ago.
Offers from China were in a wide range of $2,100-$2,200/mt CIF Japan, said one Japanese trader. But the uptrend momentum has weakened as there are more voluntary offers for late September loading, said the trader.
Previously, Chinese suppliers were limiting offers to 20-60 mt but there was an offer for 200 mt, he added.
A second Japanese trader said he heard there were offers above $2,100/mt CIF Japan but he was not seeking to buy this week as he wanted to see a longer price trend.
