On August 28, the benchmark price of nylon DTY settled at 16,740 yuan/ton, up 3.85% from the beginning of the month, with a daily gain of 0.97%. While the figure itself is modest, its position within the annual range tells a clearer story: over the past 12 months, the price has fluctuated between a low of 13,560 yuan and a high of 18,960 yuan, and the current level sits just above the midpoint of 16,260 yuan, indicating a recovery from the bottom toward the center.
Price Range and Market Sentiment
The annual midpoint is 16,260 yuan, and the current price is 480 yuan (about 2.9%) above it, while still 2,220 yuan below the peak. This neither-high-nor-low position reflects a tug-of-war between bulls and bears. The annual average of 15,284 yuan is approximately 9.5% below the current price, suggesting that most of the first half saw downward pressure, and the recent uptick is more of a corrective rebound than a trend reversal.
For buyers, this means bargaining room is narrowing. The 3.85% increase since the start of the month is moderate, but when combined with rising upstream caprolactam costs, downstream weaving mills will feel significantly higher cost pressure. More notably, the near-1% daily volatility is relatively high for the past year, indicating a sensitive market where any news could trigger rapid price adjustments.
Cost Transmission and Supply-Demand Dynamics
Nylon DTY price movements essentially reflect a redistribution of profits along the value chain. If upstream raw material prices continue to climb, margins for intermediate chips and spinning segments will be squeezed, and whether downstream demand can absorb the price increases determines the smoothness of the transmission chain. The current mid-range price suggests that the tug-of-war between upstream and downstream is unresolved: there is cost support from raw materials, but end-user demand is not strong enough to push prices beyond previous highs.
From an industrial cluster perspective, inquiries for nylon grey fabrics in major hubs like Keqiao and Shengze have increased recently, but transactions remain mostly need-based. Traders are adopting a "small orders, fast turnover" strategy, avoiding inventory buildup. This cautious sentiment aligns with the mid-range price—neither bearish nor blindly bullish.