Price-Watch™ provides price assessments for Ferro Silicon across top trading regions:
Asia-Pacific
- Ferro Silicon 75%min FOB Shanghai, China
- Ferro Silicon 70%min EX-Mumbai, India
Europe
- Ferro Silicon75%min Ex-warehouse Rotterdam, Netherlands
Note: In assessments structured as CIF [Importing Port] (Exporting Country), the country mentioned in brackets indicates the primary origin of supply (exporting country), while the named port refers to the destination port in the importing country. Other Incoterms (FOB, FD, EXW, etc.) should be interpreted in accordance with standard international trade definitions.
Ferro Silicon Price Trend Q1 2026
According to Price-Watch™, the global Ferro Silicon market saw an upward trend across the three countries tracked during Q1 2026, with China having the lowest positive change and India and the Netherlands having nearly equal higher increases.
Ferro Silicon is a vital deoxidant and alloying agent used for manufacturing steel and cast iron; therefore, the health of the global ferro-silicon industry is linked to the health of the global steel manufacturing industry.
As a result, the recovering steel manufacturing in the major consuming regions supplied the largest underlying demand for Ferro Silicon during Q1 2026 as China’s mills returned to a full production schedule after the Lunar New Year and incremental demand improvements began to occur among Europe’s steel producers.
In addition, silicon metal prices remained stable, which is a critical raw material for producing Ferro Silicon and is used with quartzite and coal prices to keep production costs stable; along with that stability, Chinese Ferro Silicon producers have been able to maintain upward pricing pressure.
As the dominant player in global Ferro Silicon production, changes in the Chinese pricing structure determined the direction of global pricing for Ferro Silicon, which resulted in an amplified cascading effect on European and Indian markets based on the dynamics of import pricing.
Overall, the Ferro Silicon market has been positively impacted during Q1 2026 through the recovering steel industry and stable production costs throughout the entire geography tracked.
China: Ferro Silicon Export prices FOB Shanghai, China; Grade- Purity: (Fe25%min, Si75%min)
In Q1 2026, the Ferro Silicon price trend in China inclined by 4.57% when compared to Q4 2025, a moderate improvement driven by recovering steel sector demand and the firm energy and raw material cost environment that characterizes Ferro Silicon production in China.
Chinese steel producers increased their procurement of Ferro Silicon for deoxidation and alloying purposes as Q1 production schedules resumed following the Lunar New Year break, generating the seasonal demand uplift that typically characterizes the first quarter.
Cast iron foundries, another significant consumer of Ferro Silicon as a carbon equivalent additive, also showed improved activity as automotive and industrial casting orders recovered.
Energy costs, particularly electricity, are a dominant component of Ferro Silicon production economics, and the broadly firm electricity environment in key Chinese production provinces supported producer pricing discipline during the quarter.
Export demand from Europe, India, and other markets also contributed to tighter domestic availability during parts of the quarter. In March 2026, Ferro Silicon prices in China fell by 1.15%, a mild month-on-month reversal that may reflect some buyer resistance after the strong gains earlier in the quarter.
Overall, China’s Ferro Silicon market delivered a moderately inclined quarter driven by steel sector recovery and energy cost support, with a slight softening in March.
Netherlands: Ferro Silicon Domestically Traded prices FD Rotterdam, Netherlands; Grade- Purity: (Fe25%min, Si75%min)
In Q1 2026, the Ferro Silicon price trend in Netherlands inclined by 5.81% when compared to Q4 2025, a solid quarterly improvement that reflected the combination of recovering European steel demand and higher import costs from Chinese and other supplying origins.
Netherlands serves as a major European hub for Ferro Silicon imports and distribution, with material sourced from China, Norway, Iceland, Brazil, and other origins. European steelmakers showed incremental demand recovery in Q1 2026 as automotive and construction-related steel orders improved modestly from the weakness of the prior year, generating higher Ferro Silicon procurement requirements.
The strong gains in Chinese Ferro Silicon prices during Q1 pushed up export offer prices, which translated directly into higher landed costs for European importers and subsequently higher market prices in Rotterdam.
Norwegian and Icelandic Ferro Silicon producers, who supply significant volumes to European markets and benefit from competitive hydroelectric energy costs, maintained stable output and did not expand supply sufficiently to offset the demand improvement.
In March 2026, Ferro Silicon prices in Netherlands rose by 0.38%, a modest month-on-month gain in the final weeks of the quarter. Overall, the Netherlands Ferro Silicon market delivered a solid inclined quarter supported by European steel sector recovery and rising import costs.
India: Ferro Silicon Domestically Traded prices EX- Mumbai, India; Grade- Purity: (Fe30%min, Si70%min)
In Q1 2026, the Ferro Silicon price trend in India inclined by 5.18% when compared to Q4 2025, a solid quarterly gain driven by recovering steel and foundry sector demand alongside the pass-through of higher global prices into the Indian import-supplemented market.
India is both a domestic producer and importer of Ferro Silicon, with production concentrated in states including Odisha, Chhattisgarh, and Himachal Pradesh.
The domestic steel sector, which has been benefiting from government infrastructure investment and robust automotive production, maintained healthy Ferro Silicon procurement during Q1 2026. Foundry applications, serving both automotive castings and industrial equipment, provided additional steady demand for Ferro Silicon throughout the quarter.
Higher Chinese export prices for Ferro Silicon raised the competitive floor for domestic Indian producers, allowing them to seek improved prices from Indian buyers who might otherwise have pressed for discounts based on domestic supply availability.
Electricity costs, a significant variable for Indian Ferro Silicon producers, remained a key determinant of production economics and influenced the pace at which cost increases could be absorbed or passed through to buyers.
In March 2026, Ferro Silicon prices in India rose by 0.38%, a modest but positive month-on-month increment confirming the broadly constructive end-of-quarter environment. Overall, India’s Ferro Silicon market delivered a solid inclined quarter driven by domestic steel and foundry sector demand and supportive global pricing dynamics.


