What is driving tin(IV) oxide price trends in China's ceramic and electronics sectors?

What is driving tin(IV) oxide price trends in China's ceramic and electronics sectors?
Tin(IV) oxide prices have been on a sustained uptrend, with Q1 2023 average prices up about 15% quarter-on-quarter, and powder grades rising even faster at around 20%. The primary cost driver is upstream tin ore, especially from Myanmar's Wa State, which supplied roughly 77% of China's tin ore imports in 2022. A mining suspension notice issued in April 2023, effective August 2023, has tightened feedstock availability. Downstream demand remains anchored in ceramics, concentrated in Guangdong, Zhejiang, Jiangxi and Fujian, plus electronics components. Supply-side disruptions from pandemic-related production delays have also contributed to the imbalance, while loose monetary policies have lifted broader commodity prices, adding further upward pressure on SnO2.