At 15,820 CNY per ton, the benchmark price of nylon DTY on July 9, 2026, appears unremarkable. Yet within the annual price range, it sits precisely at the median—neither soaring to peaks nor plunging to troughs. For the textile industry, this 'neither up nor down' stalemate is more telling than a trending market: it signals a tug-of-war between supply and demand, with neither side finding a breakthrough.
Insights from the Annual Range
According to publicly available data from China Customs, over the past year (July 9, 2025, to July 9, 2026), nylon DTY prices hit a low of 13,560 CNY/ton and a high of 18,960 CNY/ton, a volatility of over 5,400 CNY. The current price of 15,820 CNY is just 440 CNY away from the median value of 16,260 CNY, firmly within a 'median oscillation' pattern. Notably, the daily change is zero, indicating a delicate short-term balance.
This equilibrium is no accident. The annual data shows the price center is significantly lower than the 18,960 CNY peak but well above the 13,560 CNY trough, suggesting the industry is neither mired in oversupply nor enjoying a demand-driven surge. For buyers and mills in the supply chain, this means profit margins are squeezed into a narrow corridor, where any misstep could lead to inventory depreciation or missed cost advantages.
Dual Squeeze from Costs and Demand
The price stalemate in nylon DTY stems from a dual squeeze: upstream costs and downstream demand. On the cost side, raw materials like caprolactam and PA6 chips also experienced wide swings over the past year but failed to break out. Industry data indicates that the median fluctuation range of raw materials aligns closely with that of nylon DTY, suggesting that cost transmission remains effective but limited in intensity.
On the demand side, downstream sectors—textile and apparel, industrial fabrics—underwent a clear inventory cycle adjustment in 2025-2026. Order patterns in major fabric clusters like Shengze and Keqiao shifted from 'urgent orders, small batches' to 'stable long-term orders, medium batches,' making nylon DTY purchasing behavior more cautious. Buyers are reluctant to pay a premium for inventory, while mills lack the confidence to raise prices. This 'buyer's market' character is the fundamental reason prices cannot break out of the median range.
Inventory Games in Regional Clusters
Notably, inventory levels in major nylon DTY production and consumption regions—such as Changle in Fujian, Xiaoshan in Zhejiang, and Wujiang in Jiangsu—diverged in the first half of 2026. Some mills actively restocked when raw material prices were low early in the year, boosting social inventory; others maintained lean inventories, waiting for clearer demand signals. This fragmented strategy further entrench the price stalemate.
Feedback from industrial clusters shows that Changle, with its focus on warp-knitting nylon DTY, enjoys relatively stable orders but faces intense price competition. In Xiaoshan, drawing-texturing mills grapple with underutilized capacity, and some small plants have begun to cut production. These regional adjustments are reshaping the supply landscape of nylon DTY.