Chinese vanadium market still weak

Currently Chinese vanadium market keeps weak, and some suppliers offer about RMB140,000/t (USD40/kg) for ferrovanadium 50% and about RMB130,000/t (USD8.60/lb) for vanadium pentoxide flake 98%.
A Sichuan-based producer with the production capacity of 150tpm reported that the demand for vanadium from domestic and foreign buyers keeps low, as they concluded few deals with domestic buyers recently. The source added that the price of ferrovanadium 50% is at about RMB140,000/t, but they received few enquiries from domestic buyers.
The smelter has suspended their production due to the unstable market trend. "Although we offer USD11.0/lb CIF Rotterdam for vanadium pentoxide flake 98%, still concluded no deals," said the source. He added that the markdown in Chinese domestic market becomes small, but there is still the space for the export price to go down.
A Shaanxi-based producer also confirmed the weak demand in the market. The source offered RMB135,000/t (USD8.93/lb) for vanadium pentoxide flake 98%, but concluded no deals recently. The source still holds 100t of the material on hand.
The source sold 20t of vanadium pentoxide flake 98% at RMB138,000/t (USD9.13/lb) last week. "Although we received some enquiries from domestic buyers, most of those buyers just want to test the market with little intention of vanadium purchases," said the source.