On July 6, 2026, the textile bulk commodity price index revealed a stark divergence: PTA surged 1.48% while acrylonitrile plunged 3.05%. This contrast reflects fundamentally different supply-demand dynamics and cost transmission paths across the textile raw material chain.
Cost-Driven vs. Demand-Side Pressures
PTA's rise, from 5696.34 to 5780.66 CNY/ton, with a year-on-year increase of 14.90%, was primarily fueled by stronger upstream PX prices and temporary supply tightness due to plant maintenance. For polyester mills, this means rapidly rising input costs.
However, downstream polyester filament yarns showed weakness. Polyester POY fell 1.21%, DTY dropped 0.20%, and FDY remained flat. This 'raw material up, finished product down' scissors gap indicates that end-use fabric demand has not yet recovered. Weaving mills, facing higher raw material costs, are reducing purchases, and inventory pressure is moving upstream.
Polyester staple fiber rose only 0.11%, far less than PTA, confirming this trend. The polyester sector is squeezed between rising costs and weak demand, compressing margins.
Acrylonitrile's Plunge: Capacity Release Meets Demand Slump
Acrylonitrile dropped 3.05% to 9533.33 CNY/ton, despite a year-on-year increase of 19.42%. Such a sharp single-day decline is unusual in recent years.
Three key factors explain this: first, multiple new domestic acrylonitrile units came online between late 2025 and mid-2026, significantly boosting supply; second, downstream ABS resin and acrylic fiber plants are operating at low rates, failing to absorb the extra supply; third, after a prolonged period of high prices, buyers' resistance has built up, slowing restocking.
This decline benefits downstream products like acrylic fiber and carbon fiber prepreg, but buyers remain cautious, waiting for prices to stabilize.
Cotton and Cotton Yarn: Structural Contradictions Behind Firm Prices
The cotton sector performed relatively steadily. Cotton rose 0.45% to 17870.50 CNY/ton, up 17.58% year-on-year. Cotton yarn 21S and 32S were flat, up 7.50% and 6.57% year-on-year, respectively.
High cotton prices are supported by expectations of reduced planting area and low state reserve inventories. However, cotton yarn prices have failed to keep pace, reflecting limited absorption capacity from weaving and garment factories. The chain shows a 'hot upstream, lukewarm downstream' pattern: ginners and traders are bullish, while downstream greige fabric mills have insufficient new orders, with operating rates around 70%.
Viscose staple fiber and spandex prices were flat, but spandex's year-on-year increase of 21.09% indicates resilient demand for stretch fabrics. Rayon yarn was flat, with a year-on-year increase of only 3.17%, much weaker than its raw material, suggesting compressed margins.