In the first half of the year, the profit of the building technology glass industry increased significantly

In the first half of this year, driven by the rapid recovery of demand in photovoltaic cells, real estate, automobiles, computers, communications and other industries, the building technology glass industry continued the good momentum of the previous year, with major economic efficiency indicators greatly improved.

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics show that in the first half of the year, the output of flat glass above designated size reached 510 million weight boxes, an increase of 10.8% year-on-year; the output of tempered glass, laminated glass, and insulating glass was 430 million square meters, an increase of 22.4% year-on-year. At the same time, the operating income of construction technology glass enterprises above designated size reached 182.48 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 37.7%, the total profit was 26.92 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 140.1%, and the sales profit rate was 14.8%.

The reporter learned from the China Building Materials Federation that due to the impact of the epidemic and changes in the domestic and foreign situation, the ex-factory price of products in the architectural technology glass industry in May 2020 reached the low level in recent years. Subsequently, the product structure, supply and demand, cost increase, etc. Under the combined effect of various factors, the rise has resumed. Data show that in the first half of this year, the price of architectural technical glass rose by 16.9% over the same period last year, of which flat glass rose by 48.0% and technical glass rose by 3.4%. The price increase of flat glass this year is the highest increase since 1993 after the abolition of the unified glass price.

The rise in the price of architectural technology glass benefited from the diversified development of the industry, which effectively created new market demand. With the cultivation and development of the upstream and downstream markets, the market application fields and scope of glass products continue to expand, and the product structure is undergoing positive changes. Experts said that in addition to the traditional real estate market, architectural technology glass can also be used in industrial fields such as automobiles, photovoltaics, electronic appliances, and household appliances. In addition, the production and sales ratio of high-quality flat glass for photovoltaic, automotive, low-emission, and electronic glass has increased, and its price is more than twice that of the original flat glass for ordinary construction, resulting in an increase in the average price of flat glass.

In recent years, due to the demand for flat glass from photovoltaic glass, the production and sales of flat glass have increased substantially. In terms of demand, in the first half of this year, the area of ​​completed houses of real estate development enterprises increased by 25.7% year-on-year, and the real estate market demand increased significantly. At the same time, in the first half of the year, the output of major downstream applications of glass products such as automobiles, solar cells, microcomputers, and mobile phones has increased significantly, driving an increase in the demand for architectural glass. In terms of supply, in the first half of this year, in provinces with strong photovoltaic glass production and sales, such as Guangdong, Fujian, Shandong, and Zhejiang, the growth rate of flat glass production was much higher than the national average, while the production of flat glass in Hebei and Anhui showed a downward trend.

Despite the good market confidence and the continued vigorous development of production, the building technology glass industry is still under pressure to maintain its growth trend. Since the beginning of this year, the price of chemical products as raw materials has risen sharply, increasing the cost of glass production. Soda ash is one of the main raw materials for glass production. Its price has risen sharply this year, from about 1,300 yuan/ton in the fourth quarter of last year to the current 3,200 yuan/ton. Based on the consumption of 10 kilograms of soda ash per weight box of flat glass, only the price of soda ash increased, resulting in an increase of nearly 20 yuan per weight box of flat glass production costs. In addition, the rising prices of natural gas, sand and gravel and other raw materials used in glass production have also increased the production cost of glass products to a certain extent.

According to the relevant person in charge of the China Building Materials Federation, in recent years, the supply-side structural reform of the building technology glass industry has achieved good results, and the rapid growth of production and sales has solved the problem of overcapacity.

Currently, the industrial boundary between flat glass and technical glass is gradually blurred, and the extension and diversification of the industrial chain have become the mainstream of business development for architectural technical glass companies.

It is expected that in the second half of the year, the market demand for architectural technology glass will continue to rise steadily, and the annual price and industrial economic benefits will continue to rise. The export volume of my country’s architectural technical glass is estimated to reach about 4.5 million tons. The relevant person in charge of the China Building Materials Federation pointed out that in order to prevent market fluctuations and price fluctuations, relevant departments should strengthen the monitoring and supervision of glass product prices, closely follow up and downstream market fluctuations and changes in domestic and foreign situations, and release flat glass production capacity and raw material prices in a timely manner , Market supply and demand changes. Actively guide the industry and enterprises to strengthen self-discipline, guide the industry to use production capacity in an orderly and compliant manner through effective channels, and adjust industrial policies in a timely and orderly manner. Through various measures, do a good job in the coordination of the upstream and downstream industrial chain, promote the construction technology glass industry to establish a price adjustment mechanism that is compatible with the relationship between supply and demand, and ensure stable price fluctuations. To take the lead in driving up prices, we must investigate and deal with them in accordance with laws and regulations to purify the market competition environment.