Ferrosilicon is a common additive in steelmaking, playing a significant role in deoxidation. This is because ferrosilicon reacts with oxygen in the molten steel to form silicon dioxide, which floats to the surface, achieving a good deoxidation effect. The selection of ferrosilicon raw materials significantly impacts its quality. To enhance understanding, let's follow ferrosilicon manufacturers to see how to choose raw materials. The main uses of ferrosilicon are as a deoxidizer and alloying agent in steelmaking. Phosphorus (P) and sulfur (S) are impurities that greatly affect steel quality. When ferrosilicon contains excessive phosphorus, it is prone to pulverization. Therefore, low phosphorus and sulfur content is required.

In September, steel prices started weakly, and the upward momentum was weak. It seems that the "golden September" is about to be missed, but I believe that steel prices in September are still promising. Let me briefly analyze several positive factors below.

This week, steel mills' inventories decreased slightly, with a significant increase in transaction volume, while social inventories increased. Social inventories of the five major steel varieties increased this week, increasing by 35,900 tons week-on-week to 9,982,300 tons. Among them, rebar inventories decreased by 56,400 tons to 4,322,200 tons.

Since the second quarter of this year, steel prices nationwide have fluctuated and risen. Data from Lange Steel Information's market monitoring shows that as of August 14, 2018, the Lange Steel Price Index was 168.6 points, up 12.4% from March 30 of this year. Among them, the long steel price index was 185.1 points, up 19.3%; the flat steel price index was 153.9 points, up 8.6%.

Regarding market concerns such as the current Sino-US trade friction and the depreciation of the RMB, senior executives of Baosteel Group (600019.SS), China's largest steel company, responded on Tuesday that the depreciation of the exchange rate has increased the company's financial expenses, and the company has increased the hedging ratio of its foreign exchange risk exposure. It is expected that the company's export volume will remain generally stable in the second half of the year, but exports to the United States will decrease.

South Korean steelmaker POSCO said on Monday it plans to more than double its capital expenditure over the next five years to 45 trillion won to boost the company's competitiveness.

According to CNNMoney, a financial website under CNN, Mid Continent Nail, the largest nail producer in the US, is continuously laying off employees to cope with the rising costs caused by Trump's steel tariffs. If this situation continues, the company may be forced to shut down before the end of September.

Today, the domestic citric acid market continues to be weak, with the mainstream ex-factory price of citric acid monohydrate at 4700-4800 yuan/ton, and the mainstream ex-factory price of anhydrous citric acid at 5000-5300 yuan/ton. Prices for large direct users are slightly lower. The mainstream ex-factory price of sodium citrate is concentrated at 5300-5400 yuan/ton. Due to the generally low shipment volume from enterprises recently, inventories are showing an increasing trend. It is expected that the market price will still slightly decrease in the future.

When the epidemic struck, state-owned enterprises resolutely implemented the decisions and deployments of the Party Central Committee and the State Council, effectively fulfilling their political, economic, and social responsibilities. They bravely shouldered heavy burdens, fought bravely, and focused on both epidemic prevention and control and the resumption of work and production. At critical moments, they played a key role, demonstrating to the world the strength, spirit, and efficiency of China.