According to SMM data, China's EMM output was 97,800 mt in November, up 0.67% MoM and 53.08% YOY, bringing total output in the first eleven months of 2023 up to 971,100 mt, up 45.76% YoY. The main reason for slight output uptick in November was that the operating rate of manganese plants was still 70%. In addition, restart of major plants in Guangxi and Hunan offset the impact from some manganese plants’ production halts triggered by production pressure. On the demand side, total stainless crude steel in China decreased in November, and 200 series output ceased hiking and started falling. Despite this, EMM demand was modest due to winter storage demand at the end of November.
In December, an alliance meeting decided to keep operating rate of all manganese plants stable at 70%. Moreover, some plants will resume production or increase operating rate. Therefore, the overall EMM output may keep hiking to 103,700 mt in December, according to survey on scheduled production of manganese plants.
