According to the commodity analysis system of Shengyi Society, the domestic maleic anhydride market continued to decline in December. As of December 24th, the average market price of n-butane oxidation maleic anhydride remained at 5112.50 yuan/ton, a decrease of 2.85% from 5262.50 yuan/ton on December 1st.
In terms of supply, the maleic anhydride market continued to decline in December: The Wanhua auction price market continued to fall in December, with poor transaction conditions and limited support for the maleic anhydride market. The prices of the main maleic anhydride factories continued to fall, and coupled with downstream digestion of early raw material orders, new order signing was limited. As of December 24th, the factory price of solid anhydride in the maleic anhydride market in Shandong is around 4850 yuan/ton, while the factory price of liquid anhydride is around 4500 yuan/ton.
Upstream: In December, the n-butane market fluctuated and rose, mainly affected by the increase in CP prices in Saudi Arabia. As of December 24th, the price in Shandong was around 4670 yuan/ton.
Downstream: Currently, the unsaturated resin market is mainly consolidating weakly, with prices of styrene and maleic anhydride on the raw material side falling, and limited support on the cost side; Downstream procurement maintains essential demand and has limited support for unsaturated resin.
The analyst of Shengyi Society’s maleic anhydride products believes that currently, the main downstream unsaturated resin for maleic anhydride is in urgent need of procurement; At present, the price of liquid anhydride has fallen to the lowest point of the year, and some manufacturers have limited shipments. In addition, the current supply has decreased, and it is expected that the maleic anhydride market may have an upward trend in the near future.

According to the Commodity Market Analysis System of Shengyi Society, as of December 24th, the average market price of acetic acid was 2720 yuan/ton, an increase of 60 yuan/ton or 2.26% compared to the price of 2660 yuan/ton on December 17th.
Recently (12.17-12.24), the domestic acetic acid market has risen again. On the supply side, the recovery of maintenance equipment is slow, the operating rate of acetic acid is not high, factory inventory is low, and the price of acetic acid remains high and firm. Downstream inquiries have increased, and the market sentiment is optimistic. Some companies’ inventory has decreased, and the price of acetic acid continues to rise.
Recently, the price of raw material methanol has fluctuated strongly. As of the 24th, the average price in the domestic market was 2160 yuan/ton, an increase of 1.60% compared to the price of 2126 yuan/ton on December 17th. The tight circulation in the port market has supported a strong rise in spot prices. At the same time, the domestic methanol market is supported by winter freight rates, and enterprise quotations have shown strong performance. Downstream market entry follows demand, and the methanol market is fluctuating.
The downstream acetic anhydride market is relatively strong and rising. From December 17th to 24th, the average ex factory price of acetic anhydride was reduced from 4170 yuan/ton to 4162.50 yuan/ton, a decrease of 0.18%. The upstream acetic acid market is strong, and the cost of acetic anhydride continues to increase. There is no significant fluctuation in downstream demand, and enterprise shipments are weak. The market mentality is deadlocked, and the price of acetic anhydride has slightly decreased during the cycle.
In terms of future market forecast, the acetic acid analyst from Shengyi Society believes that there are many domestic acetic acid plants undergoing maintenance, and the market supply pressure is not high. Downstream demand is stable, and enterprise shipments are good. The fundamentals continue to be favorable, and it is expected that the acetic acid market will continue to operate strongly in the later stage. The market supply situation will be closely monitored in the future.

1、 Price trend
According to the Commodity Market Analysis System of Shengyi Society, the price of bromine has increased. On December 23rd, the average market price was 35400 yuan/ton, an increase of 61.64% compared to the same period last year. On December 22, the Business Society Bromine Index was 122.60, up 0.85 points from yesterday, down 50.00% from the highest point of 245.18 points during the cycle (2021-10-27), and up 108.08% from the lowest point of 58.92 points on October 29, 2014. (Note: The cycle refers to the period from September 1, 2011 to present)
2、 Market analysis
This week, the price of bromine in Shandong region remained firm. The reference ex factory price for spot goods in Shandong region is around 35000-37000 yuan/ton, and the current mainstream transaction price is around 35500 yuan/ton. Supply side: The price of bromine is greatly affected by seasonal temperatures, and the overall operating rate of the industry has been insufficient since entering winter, resulting in a continued low supply rate in the industry. In addition, the production of bromine is also relatively low due to industry policies. On the demand side: However, the downstream industry demand is generally average, so we will continue with the procurement of essential needs. Downstream enterprises have average purchasing enthusiasm.
In terms of raw materials, the overall price of domestic sulfur has remained firm, with an average market price of 3627.67 yuan/ton on December 23, an increase of 111.67% compared to the same period last year. Downstream demand is still acceptable.
Prediction: Bromine prices are expected to remain strong in the near future, while upstream sulfur prices are expected to be relatively strong. Bromine supply is tight in the near future, but downstream buyers tend to purchase on demand, which may lead to resistance to bromine price increases. The overall supply-demand game predicts that there may still be some room for bromine prices to rise in the later stage, depending on downstream market demand.

The phthalic anhydride market fluctuated and fell in December
According to the Commodity Market Analysis System of Shengyi Society, as of December 22, the price of phthalic anhydride in neighboring countries was 5533.33 yuan/ton, a fluctuating decrease of 3.77% compared to the price of phthalic anhydride at 5750 yuan/ton on December 1. In December, phthalic anhydride continued to decline, with prices of raw materials such as ortho benzene falling and costs decreasing. The operating rate of phthalic anhydride enterprises slowly increased, and the supply of phthalic anhydride was sufficient; The operating load of downstream DOP enterprises has slightly decreased, and the support for phthalic anhydride demand has weakened. Due to the decrease in costs and the increase in production, coupled with weakened demand support, the downward pressure on phthalic anhydride has increased, resulting in a volatile decline in phthalic anhydride prices in December.
The cost of phthalic anhydride has decreased, and the supply has increased
On December 22, Sinopec quoted 5700 yuan/ton for ortho benzene, a decrease of 100 yuan/ton or 1.72% from the price of 5800 yuan/ton at the end of November 30 last year. The price of ortho benzene has fallen, and the cost of phthalic anhydride has decreased. In December, the operating load of phthalic anhydride equipment remained stable at 70%, with high operating levels, increased phthalic anhydride production, and sufficient phthalic anhydride supply. The increase in supply coupled with the decrease in costs has increased the downward pressure on phthalic anhydride.
Demand side: DOP prices fluctuate and rise in December
According to the Commodity Market Analysis System of Shengyi Society, as of December 22, the DOP price was 7217.50 yuan/ton, a fluctuating increase of 2.24% compared to the DOP price of 7059.16 yuan/ton on December 1. In December, the operating load of plasticizer DOP enterprises slightly decreased to about 60%, resulting in a decrease in DOP production and weakened demand support for phthalic anhydride, leading to increased downward pressure on phthalic anhydride.
Future forecast
According to the data analyst of Shengyi Society’s phthalic anhydride products, in terms of demand, the load of DOP equipment in plasticizer enterprises has decreased, the production of plasticizers has decreased, and the support for phthalic anhydride demand has weakened; In terms of cost, the price of ortho xylene has decreased, the price of raw materials has decreased, and the cost of phthalic anhydride has decreased. In the future, the cost of phthalic anhydride will decrease, and the production of phthalic anhydride will increase, resulting in increased supply and weakened demand support. It is expected that the price of phthalic anhydride will weakly decline in the future.

1、 Trend analysis
According to the monitoring of nickel prices by Shengyi Society, nickel prices first fell and then rose this week. As of the weekend, the spot nickel price was 120416.67 yuan/ton, up 2.37% from the beginning of the week and down 3.5% year-on-year.
According to the weekly rise and fall chart of Shengyi Society, nickel prices have fallen 6 times and risen 6 times in the past 12 weeks, with a slight decrease in nickel prices recently.
Nickel industry chain
Macroscopically, after the release of November employment data in the United States, market sentiment quickly turned optimistic, with 64000 new jobs added. Although it exceeded expectations, the unemployment rate unexpectedly rose to 4.6%, the highest level since September 2021. The market’s expectation of a rate cut in 2026 has driven up metal prices, as lower borrowing costs are conducive to stimulating the economy and metal demand.
In terms of news, the Indonesian Nickel Miners Association (APNI) revealed that the nickel ore production proposed in the 2026 Work Plan and Budget (RKAB) may be about 250 million tons, a significant decrease from the production target of 379 million tons in RKAB in 2025; APNI has disclosed that the Department of Energy and Mineral Resources plans to revise the formula for calculating the Mineral Benchmark Price (HPM) for nickel commodities in early 2026. According to APNI, one of the key points of this revision is that the government will begin to value nickel associated minerals (such as cobalt) as independent minerals and impose royalties on them.
On the supply side, Indonesia’s nickel production increased significantly by 16.7% year-on-year from January to October 2025. In recent years, Indonesia has attracted a large amount of investment through its “downstream” strategy, accelerated the landing of smelting capacity, and continued to release supply increments to the global market. The domestic market also shows a trend of capacity expansion, with a year-on-year increase of 21.8% in refined nickel production during the same period.
On the demand side, the trading atmosphere in the downstream stainless steel spot market has improved, with a total inventory of 1.0636 million tons of stainless steel in the mainstream market nationwide, a decrease of 1.55% compared to the previous week. From the perspective of the new energy industry chain, the decline in nickel prices and the approaching year-end have further dragged down the price center due to the emergence of low-priced goods. At the same time, the marginal demand has weakened, and the production of ternary precursors in December has decreased month on month.
In summary, the strategic downward adjustment of Indonesia’s nickel production target indicates that global nickel supply may decrease. Although it can help optimize the global supply structure and build bottom support for nickel prices in the medium to long term, the short-term market will still engage in repeated games between policy implementation effects, supply-demand rebalancing, and macroeconomic variables. It is expected that nickel prices will experience strong fluctuations.