Glucosamine Prices: Price, Trend, Pricing, News, Analysis | ChemAnalyst

In the third quarter of 2023, there was a sudden drop in glucosamine prices in the United States, as FOB New Jersey values plummeted from $9040/mt to $8650/mt between July and September. This decline signaled a pessimistic conclusion to the quarter, primarily attributed to unusually low downstream demand and a significant surplus of supply held by market participants. The US economic growth throughout the quarter raised concerns at the Federal Reserve, indicating potential inflationary pressures. Statistics revealed that the contraction of the US manufacturing sector in July, for the ninth consecutive month, resulted from companies scaling back hiring and production in response to a decrease in new orders. Furthermore, domestic suppliers reduced their reliance on imports, particularly from China, during the third quarter due to excess inventories in the domestic market. However, this shift failed to achieve much beyond prompting suppliers to lower product prices. The soft-landing states experienced positivity in the latter half of the quarter, thanks to support from the Federal Reserve.

Asia Pacific

During the third quarter of 2023, glucosamine HCL prices in the Chinese domestic market exhibited a downward trend, falling from $5950/mt to $5370/mt FOB Qingdao between July and September. The main drivers behind this price decline were weak downstream demand from both the pharmaceutical and nutraceutical industries in domestic and international markets, along with significant inventory availability from local suppliers. Limited fresh inquiries during this period resulted in lower production output. The world’s second-largest economy experienced slower-than-expected growth in the quarter due to high deflation, unemployment, and weak international demand. Unlike other nutraceuticals, the cost of glucosamine remained relatively low in the market, unaffected by the little impact the market had on the country’s glucosamine prices leading up to China’s Golden Week vacations at the end of September. The strengthening of the yuan and the weakening of the US dollar in the final weeks of the quarter affected exports of nutraceuticals, particularly glucosamine, both domestically and internationally.

Europe

The European glucosamine market mirrored the trends observed in North America and Asia, with German prices also declining in the third quarter of 2023. Throughout the quarter, glucosamine suppliers reduced their quotations due to excess stocks meeting lower overall demand. German dietary supplement importers and distributors reported sharp declines in production, new orders, and factory prices, signaling a significant deterioration in the market. The steady and sharp decline in new orders, the largest in over three years, contributed to the overall decline in sales. Geopolitical tensions, tighter banking regulations, and economic uncertainty all played a role in diminishing demand. According to PMI figures, the eurozone private sector contracted in September, although the composite score rose slightly from 46.7 in August to 47.1 in September. The European Central Bank implemented two interest rate hikes during the quarter.