Chinese silicon metal prices continued to dip in the latest pricing session but the drops were capped by local refineries who increased up their offer prices to support the market, Metal Bulletin learned.
Metal Bulletin's Chinese grade 553 silicon price dropped by 0.8% to $1,880-1,950 per tonne on Friday April 20, from $1,900-1,960 one week ago. The Chinese grade 553 silicon export price hit a six-month high of $2,010-2,050 per tonne on March 2, boosted by extensive buying from Japanese traders who usually source materials for local aluminium alloys producers on a quarterly basis. Since then, the Chinese export market had been subdued on lower buying interest from Japanese and European traders who were waiting for prices to drop so they could take advantage of dip-buying opportunities. But the silicon export...