Chinese manganese ore market drops slightly

The Chinese manganese ore market is still characterized by slack activity and a low trading volume, while prices have dropped slightly. The mainstream quotations of Australian lump ore with 44 percent Mn content currently stand at $6.30-6.44/dmtu at China's Tianjin port, while offers of South African origin lump ore of 44 percent Mn content are at $6.44-6.60/dmtu. Also at Tianjin port, quotations for 38 percent grade Mn ore from Australia are in the range of $5.71-5.87/dmtu, while offers of South African lump ore of 38 percent Mn content are at $5.71-5.87/dmtu.
 
The silicomanganese market in northern China has remained stable in the past week. Due to the shortage of power in the Guangxi and Guizhou districts, local production of silicomanganese has been impacted. Meanwhile, many silicomanganese producers in western and southern areas have been carrying out maintenance work. Producers report that the price of electricity in southern China is still much more expensive than in the north. Accordingly, the cost of silicomanganese production in the south is relatively high and so some producers there are considering halting their production operations, which may lead to reduced demand for manganese ore.