Sulfuric acid price: open benchmarks and sulfur feedstock link

Open China sulfuric acid and elemental sulfur benchmark prints (yuan/t). Licensed PRA weekly grids excluded.
Product	Level	Day change	As of	Source
Sulfuric acid (Shengyishe benchmark)	1,540.00	0.00%	2026-10-28	100ppi benchmark wire
Sulfuric acid vs month start	−9.94%	vs 1,710 on Oct 1	2026-10-28	100ppi benchmark wire
Elemental sulfur (Shengyishe benchmark)	5,564.25	0.00%	2026-10-28	100ppi sulfur wire
Elemental sulfur (iFind spot)	5,564.25	0.00% d/d	2026-10-28	Tonghuashun iFind
Sulfuric acid (chemical day board)	1,737.50	flat w/w	2026-09-25 board	100ppi week-38 board

Searches for sulfuric acid price or sulphuric acid price usually mix three different products: merchant sulfuric acid sold to fertilizer and metals plants, captive acid made at a smelter or refinery, and the elemental sulfur that feeds burner-acid units. Sulfur Wire lists only dated open benchmarks with source URLs. Licensed Trading Economics, ChemAnalyst, or price reporting agency weekly grids stay with their publishers.

Burner acid starts with elemental sulfur burned to SO2 and converted to H2SO4. When Shengyishe's sulfur benchmark falls, burner-acid cash costs usually follow with a lag set by plant inventory and contract formulas. Smelter acid is a byproduct of non-ferrous concentrates; its price often tracks metal treatment charges and local balance more than the Gulf sulfur contract. A weak phosphate season can cut acid demand even when smelter acid supply is steady, which is the mix visible on Chinese open feeds in October 2026.

As of 28 October 2026, Shengyishe's 100ppi morning wire put the national sulfuric acid benchmark at 1,540.00 yuan per metric tonne, unchanged on the day and down 9.94 percent versus the 1,710.00 yuan print at October month start in the same statistics block. Elemental sulfur on the parallel Shengyishe benchmark wire held 5,564.25 yuan per tonne, also flat on the day, while Tonghuashun iFind's spot table matched 5,564.25 yuan with zero day-on-day change on 28 October. The acid and sulfur benchmarks therefore moved together through the October unwind but not tick-for-tick: acid down roughly 170 yuan from month open against sulfur down more than 2,100 yuan on the same 100ppi month-start comparison.

The 25 September 2026 Shengyishe chemical price board, still cited on open 100ppi archives, held sulfuric acid at 1,737.50 yuan per tonne for the week with elemental sulfur at 7,719.00 yuan, a reminder that board series and daily benchmark wires can diverge. Track the product and date stamp before you infer acid margin from sulfur alone.

For North American context, U.S. Geological Survey Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 states that about 90 percent of U.S. sulfur consumption is in sulfuric acid form, with phosphate fertilizer and industrial leaching as major sinks. That macro frame explains why Alberta recovered sulfur prices and Vancouver FOB bids react when Chinese acid consumers slow, even though USGS does not publish a daily acid assessment.

What the 2026 sulfur slide means for acid buyers: when elemental sulfur benchmarks fall faster than acid, burner-acid producers can see margin relief if they buy spot sulfur, while fertilizer buyers may still face weak product prices that keep run rates near 40 percent on open Chinese commentary from 21 October (SunSirs). Acid buyers should pair this page with how phosphate fertilizer demand drives sulfur prices, China sulfur price today for daily sulfur history, and sulfur price today for Pacific dollar markers.

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FAQ

Where can I see an open sulfuric acid price benchmark with a date?

Shengyishe (100ppi) publishes a daily sulfuric acid benchmark wire in yuan per tonne. On 28 October 2026 the open print was 1,540.00 yuan per tonne, unchanged on the day, per 100ppi detail-20261028-6406965.

How does sulfuric acid pricing link to elemental sulfur?

Burner-acid plants consume elemental sulfur as feedstock, so domestic sulfur benchmark moves on 100ppi and iFind feeds set replacement cost for new acid production. Smelter acid is a byproduct of concentrate processing and can diverge when metal treatment terms dominate local balance.

What moved sulfuric acid prices in October 2026 on open Chinese feeds?

100ppi put the sulfuric acid benchmark at 1,540.00 yuan per tonne on 28 October 2026, down 9.94 percent from the 1,710.00 yuan October 1 reference in the same wire, while elemental sulfur benchmarks fell further over the same month on parallel 100ppi and iFind tables.

Does Sulfur Wire republish Trading Economics or ChemAnalyst sulfuric acid grids?

No. This page cites only open URLs the desk can verify, such as 100ppi benchmark wires and Tonghuashun iFind spot tables. Licensed commercial price pages require their own subscriptions.

Where do phosphate fertilizer buyers fit in?

Wet-process phosphoric acid consumes sulfuric acid. When MAP and DAP operating rates stay near 40 percent on open SunSirs commentary, acid demand often softens alongside sulfur spot, as described on the phosphate fertilizer demand topic page.

NA Sulfur Outlook: weekly Pacific and Alberta desk brief. Free at [email protected].