Key takeaways
- European lysine HCl stocks are lower than usual as buyers hold off purchasing until the final anti-dumping duty rate is set, but limited demand keeps supply sufficient
- The EC has proposed raising duties on Chinese lysine to 74.2-81.4%, with the definitive outcome expected by 30 January 2027, while Chinese exports fell 16% in August to 85.47 KT
- Lysine HCl DDP NW Europe is at €1.85/kg, up 13.9% in three months and 25.4% YOY, as Chinese suppliers push duty liability onto buyers and raise EU-bound offers
Market participants reported lysine HCl stocks in Europe as “lower than usual” due to hesitancy to purchase as buyers await the final duty rate for anti-dumping regulations. However, because demand remains limited, stock is sufficient, according to a trader. A producer agreed that stocks were sufficient when all lysine types are taken into account.
The total Chinese lysine exports dropped 16% month-on-month in August, totalling 85.47 KT. The same producer said shipments from China had slowed ahead of the new duties, as they did when the original duties were introduced. The producer added that volumes could recover if the additional duty is “lower than expected.”
Lysine HCl DDP NW Europe is at €1.85/kg, up 13.9% in three months and 25.4% year-over-year.
Higher duties proposed
The European Commission (EC) has proposed increasing anti-dumping duties on Chinese lysine imports to 74.2–81.4%, following an anti-absorption reinvestigation that found Chinese export prices had declined despite existing trade measures, according to a disclosure document dated October 29, 2026.
The reinvestigation was opened in April following a complaint from Eurolysine, the EU’s only lysine producer, which alleged that falling Chinese export prices had undermined the existing duties. The European Commission is expected to announce the definitive outcome of its anti-absorption reinvestigation into Chinese lysine imports by 30 January 2027.
FEFAC and DAKOFO, the European feed industry associations, raised concerns that higher duties could increase feed costs. The EC rejected these arguments, stating that the reinvestigation was intended to restore the effectiveness of the original measures. Chinese lysine imports have been subject to registration since July, which allows duties to be collected retroactively.
Contract terms and supplier response
Chinese suppliers and traders have increasingly included clauses that shift responsibility for any additional duty onto buyers, according to market sources. Some are reportedly willing to drop these clauses in exchange for a price premium. A Chinese producer said offers for EU-bound lysine had increased after the EC proposal, and most tier-one Chinese producers reported being sold out through December.
Image source: Adobe
Written by Crown Ashiwaju
