Calcium Carbide prices rose in early December due to an ongoing tightening of supplier inventory and rising production costs. Higher than average energy costs (specifically natural gas) remained high on an ongoing monthly basis, giving suppliers the ability to maintain their pricing discipline.
Late December, calcium carbide market momentum slowed, and the holiday season slowed business operations. As a result, many downstream customers temporarily backed off from active purchasing and caused prices in the end of December to stabilize despite continued strength in overall market fundamentals.
The U.S. steel industry is a strong source of demand for calcium carbide. Calcium carbide consumption for Desulphurization and its use as an energy source continues to be high. The U.S. crude steel production continued to record year-on-year growth during December (x.xx) to xx.x million net tons, while the overall...
