[recycled abs daily review] cost bottom supports market, stalemate leads to weak stability and quiet trading

Today, the recycled ABS market continued to operate in a narrow and stagnant range, with mainstream quotations showing no significant rise or fall and regional price spreads remaining stable. All prices are cash ex-works, excluding tax. Based on monitoring data from Longzhong, Jinlianchuang, and Zhuochuang, the prices are as follows: Laizhou door panel titanium dioxide secondary crushed material: RMB 8,200-8,300/ton; Guangdong imported high-impact black granules: RMB 9,200-9,500/ton; Shandong off-white first-grade pellets: RMB 8,170-8,370/ton.

The cost support remains solid, with the mainstream recycling price for used ABS materials in home appliances and electronics holding firm at 4410-4720 yuan/ton. Sorting and recycling costs account for 45% of the total production cost, while expenses for utilities and modifiers remain stable. As a result, processing profits for companies continue to be squeezed, leaving little room for significant price reductions. On July 13, the main contract for styrene rose, with the benchmark price for new ABS in East China at 9450 yuan/ton. The price difference between new and recycled materials stands at 2070 yuan/ton, narrowing by 100 yuan from last month, indicating weakened demand for recycled substitutes.

At the equipment and supply-demand level, the average operating rate of recycled ABS processing plants nationwide is 47%. Under normalized environmental protection controls, crushing lines in many regions have reduced operating loads, and no new production units have come on stream. On the supply side, manufacturers’ finished-goods inventories remain at 11–13 days. Producers are scheduling production flexibly to control the pace of shipments, with no concentrated sell-offs. Downstream home appliance, small appliance, and luggage injection-molding industries have entered the traditional off-season, with end-market orders shrinking. Finished-product manufacturers are operating at low loads, replenishing only small quantities as needed, and large-scale stockpiling has completely disappeared.

Today, overall trading in the market is relatively light, with only scattered small orders from regular customers, and individual purchase volumes mostly under 10 tons. Downstream buyers are generally pressing for lower prices, with negotiation discounts ranging from 80 to 120 yuan/ton. There are significant differences in industry sentiment; upstream recycling plants, constrained by high raw material costs, have a strong willingness to resist price declines, while downstream manufacturing plants are bearish on future prospects and are holding cash to wait and see. Intermediaries are buying low and selling low to avoid risks.

ABS has no independent futures contracts, and the upstream styrene market has shown slight strength, but the impact on the recycled spot market is limited, making it difficult to boost market sentiment. Forecast for the future: In the short term, recycled ABS will continue to fluctuate within a range. The cost of raw materials provides a bottom support to limit significant declines, but persistent weakness in end-user demand and limited price increases for new materials constrain the potential for rebounds. Unless there is a shortage of raw materials or a significant price increase for new materials, market trading will likely remain at low levels.

(The data in this article is compiled from publicly available information for market reference only and does not constitute any investment or trading advice.)