(August 11, 2026)Entering mid-August, China’s white carbon black industry has officially stepped into the preparation phase for the traditional peak demand season. The market conditions of precipitated silica and fumed silica show a clear divergence. Supported by a slight uptick in upstream raw material costs, steady recovery of operating rates among downstream traditional industries and surging demand from emerging new energy sectors, the industry has shaken off the sluggish off-season performance in July, with overall inquiry sentiment picking up markedly. Nevertheless, overcapacity and inventory backlogs of general-grade products still cap upward price momentum. High-end industrial upgrading, overseas market expansion and low-carbon technological transformation have become the core development priorities at present.

　　In terms of market prices, the mainstream ex-factory quotations for domestic precipitated white carbon black edged up slightly this week. According to monitoring data from business platforms, as of August 11, the national average market price of precipitated silica inched up to 5,968 yuan per ton, rising by 0.58% from early August, putting an end to the prolonged flat trend. Regional price gaps remain prominent. In East China, the tax-inclusive ex-factory price of mainstream rubber-grade precipitated silica ranges from 5,900 to 6,300 yuan per ton; producers in Shandong, Fujian and other northern and southern China regions offer lower prices, with spot prices of ordinary industrial-grade products standing between 5,100 and 5,800 yuan per ton. Price gaps across segmented grades keep widening: low-grade microsphere silica is priced at roughly 2,600 yuan per ton, while high-purity grades dedicated to food and pharmaceutical applications exceed 6,500 yuan per ton.

　　The market for fumed silica boasts stronger price resilience. Backed by tightened supply of organosilicon monomers, prices have stayed steadily high. The mainstream quotation for domestic general hydrophilic fumed silica is 20,000–23,500 yuan per ton, while premium hydrophobic modified fumed silica is stable at 25,000–28,000 yuan per ton. Imported high-end fumed silica still dominates the premium segment with prices ranging from 28,000 to 38,500 yuan per ton. Spot supplies are tight, and delivery schedules for some orders have been postponed to early September.

　　Modest increases in raw material costs underpin the bottom of current prices. Key feedstocks for white carbon black, namely water glass, soda ash and sulfuric acid, have all seen price hikes of varying degrees. Multiple soda ash plants underwent routine maintenance, reducing market circulation volumes and pushing spot prices up by 500–600 yuan per ton month-on-month. Operating rates of downstream fertilizer and metallurgical industries rebounded alongside concentrated equipment maintenance, lifting sulfuric acid prices by approximately 120 yuan per ton. Stable prices of industrial silicon and methyltrichlorosilane have further raised production costs for fumed silica.

　　Meanwhile, stricter environmental regulations have squeezed corporate profit margins. In compliance with cleaner production requirements, major domestic white carbon black manufacturers keep investing in technical upgrades for wastewater recycling and waste heat utilization. Mandatory indicators for sodium sulfate recovery rate and unit product energy consumption have forced small and medium-sized manufacturers to pursue technological upgrades, accelerating the phase-out of inefficient backward capacity and boosting production concentration among leading enterprises.

　　Demand presents a dual structure: steady recovery of traditional rigid demand paired with robust growth in emerging sectors. The tire and rubber industry, the largest traditional consumption field, has entered the stockpiling cycle for peak season. Major domestic tire manufacturers have gradually raised operating loads, and demand for white carbon black from new energy vehicle supporting tires has surged notably. Industry statistics indicate that the proportion of high-dispersion white carbon black in new energy tire formulations has climbed to 68.9% in 2026, a sharp year-on-year increase. Thanks to its capability to lower tire rolling resistance and extend driving range, high-dispersion modified white carbon black holds abundant orders, in stark contrast to the sluggish sales of ordinary general-grade products. Procurement from rubber footwear, hoses and sealing parts industries remains stable with on-demand restocking, without large-scale bulk purchasing.

　　Demand from coatings and construction materials has expanded steadily. With the popularization of waterborne coatings and growing market demand for exterior wall waterproofing, white carbon black is widely adopted as a rheology modifier, matting agent and anti-settling agent. For outdoor concrete and stone protection scenarios, hydrophobic white carbon black matched with silane systems is gaining wider application. As home renovation and exterior wall repair projects kick off in August, procurement volumes of industrial-grade white carbon black have risen moderately.

　　Silicone rubber for photovoltaic sealing, energy storage module encapsulation and electronic component potting has emerged as a new growth driver. Rising installed photovoltaic capacity during the peak season fuels demand for silicone rubber, pushing annual consumption growth of white carbon black in this sector above 13%. Trial and bulk purchase orders for hydrophobic fumed silica and ultra-fine modified precipitated silica keep rising. In addition, demand from fine chemical segments including food anticaking agents, pharmaceutical carriers and pesticide sustained-release additives maintains steady growth, further broadening the application scope of the industry.

　　Operating rates vary sharply across the supply side. The precipitated silica sector suffers from massive overall production capacity and mounting inventory pressure for general grades. Most small and medium-sized factories maintain moderate operating rates of 70%–78%, arranging production based on orders to avoid inventory accumulation. Leading enterprises adopt differentiated production strategies by cutting output of low-end generic products and expanding capacity for high-dispersion tire-specific, hydrophobic modified and ultra-fine functional silica, effectively easing their own inventory burdens.

　　The operating rate of fumed silica remains low at 62%–65%. Most manufacturers adjust production flexibly according to order volumes. Coupled with tightened supply of upstream monomers, overall spot inventories stay low, granting the product strong anti-drop properties. Exports sustain sound performance. Overseas buyers from Southeast Asia, Europe and Latin America increasingly recognize high-performance domestic white carbon black. Abundant overseas orders for high-dispersion tire-grade and hydrophobic modified products offset fierce domestic competition for general grades, serving as a vital driver boosting industrial revenue.

　　Technological iteration and low-carbon transformation in the industry are accelerating. Recently, multiple domestic new material enterprises have optimized production processes for high-dispersion white carbon black, bringing its reinforcing and anti-aging properties on par with top international standards and gradually realizing import substitution for high-end products. The circular economy model is being rolled out faster: recycling rates of production wastewater and by-product sodium sulfate keep rising, alleviating environmental emission pressure while lowering overall production costs.

　　The global supply chain landscape is also shifting. Major overseas chemical conglomerates are expanding white carbon black capacity in North America to tap the long-term potential of green tires, bringing new opportunities alongside intensified competition for domestic manufacturers venturing overseas.

　　Looking ahead to market trends, industrial institutions forecast that demand will be further unleashed from late August to early September amid the traditional peak season, as tire and rubber goods manufacturers ramp up stockpiling efforts. Supported by stable raw material costs, the market is poised for mild upward momentum. However, prices will be restrained from surging drastically due to the short-term difficulty in digesting excess capacity of ordinary precipitated silica, and the market will mainly fluctuate upward moderately.

　　In segmented tracks, high-dispersion tire-specific white carbon black, hydrophobic fumed silica and new energy-oriented modified products face tight supply-demand balances, whose price trends will far outperform ordinary industrial-grade varieties. In the long run, phasing out backward low-end capacity, advancing functional modification, and tapping new energy and overseas markets will be the inevitable path for China’s white carbon black industry to break profit bottlenecks and achieve high-quality development.