In July, the needle coke market saw average trading activity.

 Summary: In July, the needle coke market saw average trading activity. Downstream manufacturers of anode materials maintained stable procurement, with some companies starting to make purchases in the latter half of the month. Graphite electrode manufacturers continued to engage in essential procurement. This month, the second phase of Lianhua New Material's 70,000-ton needle coke production line went into operation, and Henan Baoshun also commenced production of pitch coke and needle coke. In terms of prices, there was a slight downward adjustment at the beginning of the month, but prices for oil-based needle coke increased towards the end of the month due to rising prices of slurry oil. Specifically, coal-based needle coke was priced at 7,500-9,000 yuan/ton, oil-based needle coke at 6,900-9,500 yuan/ton, and coal and oil-based raw coke at 4,500-5,500 yuan/ton. In terms of import prices, Japanese coal-based needle coke was reported at $1,100/ton, and Korean coal-based needle coke at $1,100/ton. For oil-based needle coke, the prices were around $1,500-1,900/ton for Japan and $1,200-1,400/ton for the UK. The price of anode materials ranged from $650-800/ton.