1 The price of melt-blown cloth for mask machines has dropped significantly
On June 4, the topic “The price of melt-blown cloth for mask machines plummeted” was a hot search topic.
Melt-blown cloth is the filter layer in the middle of the mask and the most important material of the mask. It has Filters bacteria and prevents the spread of germs. As the COVID-19 epidemic spreads around the world, the rigid demand for masks has skyrocketed, which has also made meltblown cloth a hot commodity. The price has suddenly skyrocketed, comparable to gold in the manufacturing industry.
It is reported that since the outbreak of the new crown epidemic, the price of melt-blown cloth in my country has gradually risen from the original 18,000 per ton to a high of about 750,000 per ton in early May. Mask machines have also increased from the initial price of 200,000 yuan/unit to 500,000 to more than 1 million yuan/unit, and in some cases even to 2 million yuan/unit. In addition, non-woven fabrics, earbands, nose strips… all industries related to epidemic prevention and control have been ignited by the sudden outbreak of demand.
However, starting from late May, the prices of mask machines and melt-blown cloths have fallen, catching many businesses off guard.
According to statistics from Zhaoplast.com, the price of meltblown cloth has dropped significantly since mid- to late May. Among them, the price of grade 99 meltblown cloth was close to 725,000 yuan/ton on May 1, and the price had dropped to 250,000 yuan/ton on June 3. The price of grade 90 meltblown cloth has dropped from about 400,000 yuan/ton in early May to 35,000 yuan/ton on June 3.
(Data source: Find Plastic Network)
2 Loss money too A big sale
As masks that were in urgent need of hard currency before, as the domestic epidemic is gradually coming to an end, and a large number of companies have poured in to produce masks in the early stage, the market supply has become saturated, and even Oversupply.
At present, the price of masks has plummeted. Cyberland found that on a certain e-commerce platform, the price of disposable protective masks has reached as low as 1 cents per piece, with free shipping.
Industry insiders said that this retail price is actually lower than the ex-factory price of some mask factories. Calculated based on the price in May, one ton of qualified civilian grade 90 meltblown cloth is about 400,000 yuan. One ton of meltblown cloth can produce 1 million disposable masks. The cost of meltblown cloth alone is already 40 cents. In addition, if you include the cost of non-woven fabrics, hanging ears, strips, and labor, a mask sells for more than 1 cent. If the quality of the mask is up to standard, the merchant will definitely lose money and sell the goods.
Why sell at a loss? Obviously, in the early days, many manufacturers increased production capacity and hoarded a large amount of goods in order to catch up with the business opportunities of masks. Now they are selling masks at low prices to clear inventory and collect funds.
In addition to masks, mask machines were also sold at low prices. Some companies that had previously switched to mask production had purchased mask machines in order to expand production capacity, but they had become useless. Many companies resold mask machines previously purchased for RMB 1 million for RMB 200,000 to prevent the mask machines from becoming scrap metal.
In addition, the mask machine industry is also beginning to cool down. During the epidemic, the prices of equipment from mask machine manufacturers have skyrocketed. The price of a mask machine originally priced at about 200,000 yuan has increased to 300,000-600,000 yuan, and some prices even exceed one million yuan. And under the high price, the equipment delivery cycle cannot be guaranteed. Most delivery times take 1-2 months, and the delivery time for some N95 mask production equipment is even as long as half a year. Today, the number of orders from mask machine manufacturers has also dropped sharply. There is a large backlog of spot goods, and in order to clear the inventory, manufacturers can only sell at reduced prices.
3 industry reshuffles
Data show that among more than 50,000 companies operating masks , there are 17,013 companies engaged in importing and exporting anti-epidemic materials. However, the quality of these masks is actually uneven.
On April 10, the General Administration of Customs issued Announcement No. 53 to strengthen quality standard supervision of masks. Since many mask factories produce civilian masks, they have not obtained a medical device product certificate and cannot pass customs inspection for export.
Under the new customs regulations, the export of disposable masks from a large number of mask factories has been blocked and they can only return the target to the domestic market. As the domestic epidemic situation stabilizes and the mask market has become saturated, the core competitiveness of masks is now quality and price.
Since April, the State Administration for Market Regulation has established a task force through preliminary clues, issued documents and requirements, severely cracked down on illegal chains that drive up the prices of epidemic prevention materials such as meltblown cloth, and rectified and regulated meltblown in key areas. Cloth production enterprise order.
On April 17, the website of the State Administration of Market released a news: Yangzhong City, Jiangsu Province implemented “shock therapy” on the melt-blown cloth industry. Since the outbreak of the new crown epidemic, more than 800 registered companies in Yangzhong City that produce and sell meltblown non-woven fabrics have all closed down for rectification.
On May 20, the State Administration for Market Regulation released the “Typical Cases of Illegal Behaviors of Hiking up the Prices of Meltblown Cloth and Other Anti-epidemic Materials During the Epidemic Prevention and Control Period (The Eleventh Batch)”, exposing 9 An illegal case of driving up the price of meltblown cloth. A group of companies and “traitors” who promoted meltblown cloth were punished.
The State Administration of Market also issued a notice requiring local market supervision departments to conduct inspections on designated enterprises.Carry out special investigations on the price of melt-blown non-woven fabrics, focus on investigating designated melt-blown non-woven fabric enterprises, give priority to handling complaints and reports on the price of melt-blown non-woven fabrics, and those suspected of violating the law must be resolutely investigated and punished in accordance with the law.
In addition, the State Administration of Market has issued emergency notices to the market supervision bureaus of many provinces and cities to ensure market price stability, maintain market order, and inspect quality. In addition, in response to the problem of skyrocketing prices, relevant departments have begun to investigate and rectify raw material prices, and conduct interviews with key enterprises.
After the boom, the mask industry is undergoing a major reshuffle, and the market will return to rationality.
4 New standards for masks
On July 1, 2020, GB 2626-2019 was officially implemented. The GB 2626-2019 standard replaces GB 2626-2006 “Respiratory Protective Equipment Self-priming Filtering Anti-Particulate Respirators”. This standard will put forward higher requirements for masks in terms of respiratory resistance, air tightness, practical performance, cleaning and disinfection. Please pay attention to your test reports, certificates, packaging boxes and other related materials.
What is the difference between GB 2626-2006 and GB 2626-2019?
Note: The new implementation standard will be implemented on July 1, 2020 Begin execution. </p
