How does oleic acid's supply chain and pricing compare to acrylic acid in China?

How does oleic acid's supply chain and pricing compare to acrylic acid in China?
While acrylic acid prices in China have shown volatility—dropping from 13,000 to 11,800 yuan per ton in one week in July, then rebounding to 5,600 yuan by June 2023—oleic acid follows a different dynamic. Oleic acid is derived from natural oils and fats, making its cost structure tied to vegetable oil markets and waste oil collection rather than petrochemical feedstocks like propylene. The acrylic acid market is highly concentrated, with top producers like Satellite Chemical controlling over 20% of capacity, whereas oleic acid production remains more fragmented with quality varying by feedstock source. For industrial oleic acid, pricing pressures come from environmental regulations on waste oil processing and competition from imported high-purity grades. This divergence means buyers of oleic acid derivatives, including radiolabeled forms, face less short-term price whipsaw but more long-term supply reliability questions compared to acrylic acid buyers.