The price of nylon FDY has completed a full cycle from peak to trough over the past year, with the current benchmark of 16,300 CNY/ton not only at the mid-low range but also down over 18% from the high at the start of the year. This price movement is not an isolated event but a concentrated reflection of the supply-demand imbalance in the chemical fiber industry.
Price Cycle and Market Signals
From June 2025 to June 2026, nylon FDY prices ranged from 14,175 CNY/ton to 19,950 CNY/ton, with a median of 17,062.5 CNY/ton and an annual average of 15,593.65 CNY/ton. The current price is 3,650 CNY below the peak and only 2,125 CNY above the trough, indicating that the market is approaching cost support but has not yet bottomed out.
Looking at monthly fluctuations, prices were still at 17,000 CNY/ton at the start of June but fell 4.12% by the end of the month, a moderately fast decline among textile raw materials. The daily change has been zero for consecutive days, suggesting a lack of short-term rebound momentum, with both buyers and sellers in a wait-and-see mode.
Industrial Transmission and Downstream Pressure
Nylon FDY is mainly used in outdoor apparel, sportswear fabrics, and high-end home textiles. The current price slump is directly attributed to insufficient orders from downstream weaving mills, especially as foreign trade exports are affected by overseas inventory cycles, significantly slowing procurement rhythms.
Upstream, caprolactam prices are also under pressure, squeezing margins in the chip segment. Operating rates at nylon FDY producers are generally around 70%, with some small and medium factories voluntarily cutting production to ease inventory pressure. This means that if demand does not pick up, prices could further decline to the 14,000 CNY/ton range.
Regional Industrial Cluster Reactions
In major nylon clusters such as Changle in Fujian and Xiaoshan in Zhejiang, there has been an obvious slowdown in shipments. Traders report that the inventory turnover days for standard FDY specifications have extended from the normal 20 days to over 35 days. Some factories have adopted flexible pricing strategies through individual negotiations, trying to exchange small price cuts for faster cash flow.
However, downstream buyers are in no rush to place orders, generally expecting further price declines. This 'buy on rising, not falling' mentality further exacerbates market gridlock.
Costs and Competitive Landscape
The spread between current nylon FDY prices and raw material costs has narrowed to historic lows. Based on current spot caprolactam prices, the theoretical production cost of FDY is about 15,500 CNY/ton, with actual selling prices only about 800 CNY/ton higher. After deducting processing costs, the industry average gross margin has fallen below 5%.
Meanwhile, competing products like polyester FDY and spandex are also at low prices, leading to some substitution effects. In apparel fabric procurement, brands prefer cost-effective polyester blends, further suppressing nylon's market share.
Foreign Trade and Exchange Rate Variables
In the first half of 2026, increased volatility in the RMB exchange rate created two-way pressure on export-oriented companies. Nylon FDY export quotes are denominated in USD, but domestic procurement costs are settled in RMB, making it difficult for foreign trade firms to lock in profits. Some overseas clients are demanding price cuts of 5%-8%, threatening to switch to Southeast Asian suppliers.
Customs data shows that from January to May 2026, nylon filament yarn export volumes grew only 2.3% year-on-year, far below the 8% growth rate in the same period last year, indicating weakening external demand.