The Price of TiO2 has Increased Again
March is not over yet, and there have been two price inreases in the titanium dioxide industry this year, on January 19 and February 20 respectively. On March 18, Lomon issued its third price increase letter this year. Lomon is the largest leading company in the domestic titanium dioxide industry. Lomon's price increases often trigger domestic titanium dioxide companies to follow suit within about three days, forming an industry-wide price increase.
Before Lomon issued the price increase letter on March 18, international titanium dioxide giant Tronox had already announced a price increase on March 11. Tronox said in the price increase letter that the business environment in our industry has been challenging since the second quarter of 2022, and the industry's profit margins are unsustainable. To support our continued reinvestment in vertical integration, the price of all TiONA@titanium dioxide rutile products sold in the Asia Pacific region will be adjusted to increase by $125, effective April 1, 2024.
There is a huge demand for chemical fertilizers during the spring plowing period, and the price of sulfuric acid, the raw material for the production of chemical fertilizers, rises seasonally. Sulfuric acid is also the main raw material for the production of sulfuric acid titanium dioxide, which has led to an increase in the cost of titanium dioxide raw materials.
Due to the impact of safety and environmental protection of small scattered mines in Yunnan titanium ore, market resource supply has further tightened. Domestic titanium ore prices have remained high, and imported titanium ore prices have also risen, further exacerbating the cost pressure on titanium dioxide companies.
The price increases and continued high levels of sulfuric acid and titanium ore have prompted titanium dioxide companies to increase prices to transfer rising raw material costs to the downstream of the industrial chain.
