China's magnesium ingot output is seen at 701,005 mt, equating to 44% of the country's total capacity of 1.6034 million mt/year and down 20% from 2014, trade platform Northeast Asia Magnesia Material Trading Center said Tuesday.
It forecast output in December at 58,000 mt, in line with November.
However, demand has not increased in December, with producers facing the twin pressures of falling ingot prices and "hardships in selling," the center said.
China's domestic magnesium ingot stood at Yuan 12,100/mt ($1,936/mt) mid-December, down from Yuan 12,300/mt a month earlier, its data showed.
Cutting output or halting production would intensify a funding shortage this close to year end, so magnesium producers will likely delay such moves until the Lunar New Year holiday in February, the center said.
