Texas, USA: The prices of Calcium Carbide have gained momentum in the US domestic market with the onset of the fourth quarter of 2023. The restructuring of the construction sector with new projects has boosted the Calcium Carbide market sentiments. In addition, as per the observed market scenario, for the third month in a row, downstream manufacturers faced increasing costs and raised prices for their products as inflation gained traction, primarily due to elevated prices of oil-related inputs.

As per the market participants, the inquiries from the downstream Steel industries, a major consumer of Calcium Carbide, remained on the higher end in October. During the week ending on October 28, 2023, domestic raw steel production was reported at 1,707,000 net tons, marking an increase from the previous year when it stood at 1,644,000 net tons. This indicates a 3.8% year-over-year growth, suggesting a modest yet favorable uptick in steel production. Foreseeing the active demand from the downstream Steel industries, the manufacturers have raised the prices of upstream raw materials such as Calcium Carbide to secure high-profit margins. Furthermore, the maintenance shutdown at the US Formosa plant, which has a total downstream PVC production capacity of 90,000 metric tons per year, has sparked concerns about the supply side in the US market. The limited availability of downstream PVC, combined with a resurgence in demand from the terminal market, has further fueled a bullish market sentiment among manufacturers of Calcium Carbide.

On the other hand, in China, after witnessing a stable run of Calcium Carbide prices in almost three weeks in October, the muted demand from the downstream PVC industries has cast its shadow over the market fundamentals. The data from the ChemAnalyst demonstrate that the prices of Calcium Carbide have hovered around USD 420-425 per ton in the week ending October 27 2023. As per the market sources, the downstream firms have already restocked their Calcium Carbide inventories before the Golden Week Holidays. As a result, the Calcium Carbide market transactions have been slashed in the Chinese market.

According to ChemAnalyst's pricing intelligence, the prices of Calcium Carbide might gain momentum in the coming month. An expected revival of demand from the downstream construction sector is likely to accelerate the market fundamentals of Calcium Carbide. However,  following a difficult three-month period, the US markets saw a resurgence when the Federal Reserve opted to keep interest rates unchanged for the second consecutive time. This move is also expected to ease the strains from the USA's manufacturing sector, strengthening the market performance of key raw materials, including Calcium Carbide.