Rising Demand Helps Magnesium Sulphate Prices to Rise in Europe

The market for Magnesium Sulphate has sustained its firmness, exhibiting a persistent upward price trajectory in May 2024. It recorded a significant increase of 13.6%, reflecting a steady and gradual ascent driven by robust demand for Magnesium Sulphate outpacing supply. The demand for Magnesium Sulphate in the personal care product industry surged significantly, propelled by a thriving cosmetic sector. In late April, Beiersdorf exhibited strong performance in Q1 2024, with surge in sales by 7.3%. Simultaneously, the pharmaceutical markets in the US and Europe exhibited growth rates of 19% in the first quarter of 2024. Novartis reported a net sales increase of 11% year-on-year, around 11.829 billion USD. At the same time, the market experienced inadequate availability of Magnesium Sulphate stocks, caused by the affected operating rates at manufacturing facilities primarily attributed to limited supplies of feedstock Magnesium and Sulphuric Acid.

Fugu Jinchuan, with a Magnesium production capacity of 25 kilotons per year in exporter China, halted magnesium smelting on May 21, 2024, to conduct pipeline maintenance. After that, it is scheduled to resume in late May, with operations scaling up to 80 tons per day. At the same time, the feedstock Sulphuric Acid prices skyrocketed, and the market witnessed inadequate availability of supplies due to reduced production rates during the past weeks and improved demand from agrochemical industries.

According to the ChemAnalyst data sources, the Magnesium Sulphate FOB Hamburg quotations in Germany witnessed USD 460/MT at the end of May 2024.

Demand for Magnesium Sulphate remained strong among manufacturers of personal care products during the first quarter of 2024. Beiersdorf experienced robust performance. Beiersdorf's Q1 2024: Sales surge to €2.6B, up 7.3% organically. NIVEA's double-digit growth drives portfolio performance, with record Q1 sales. At the same time, inquiries were firm from the Pharma sector. The pharmaceutical industry performed well. Roche's total revenue for the first quarter amounted to 14.399 billion Swiss francs (approximately 15.7 billion US dollars), marking a 2% year-on-year increase (at constant exchange rates). Within this, revenue from the pharmaceutical business was 10.921 billion Swiss francs (approximately 11.9 billion US dollars), up by 2% year-on-year (at constant exchange rates). However, inquiries for Magnesium Sulphate were sluggish from the food sector amid an estimated increase of regional food inflation by 7.7%.

As per the estimation, Magnesium Sulphate prices may increase further in the European region towards the end of the 2024 second quarter. The production rates of Magnesium Sulphate may remain affected due to the sluggish availability of feedstock Magnesium supplies. Fugu Jinchuan in China is estimated to produce 2.3 kilotons of material in June 2024. At the same time, Magnesium Sulphate orders may improve at the beginning of Q3 as stocking practices may remain firm before the summer holidays.