Chinese silicon metal export prices continued to edge up on Friday March 2 amid renewed buying interest from Japanese buyers last week.
Metal Bulletin's Chinese grade 553 silicon metal export price moved up to $2,010-2,050 per tonne on Friday, up 0.2% from the previous week. Tightness on spot availability persisted and is expected to be a dominant theme for March as a result of the halt of operations at refineries in Sichuan and Yunnan province, which are major production hubs in China for grade 553 silicon metal. Traditionally, silicon refineries in southern China curtail operations during the dry season between November and March when hydroelectricity supply is reduced and the cost of power increases. Operations are not expected to resume in...