Milan Pushes Sulfuric Acid Above 2022 Peak on May 5
On May 5, sulfuric acid prices reported by the Milan Chamber of Commerce moved well above the peak reached in the 2022 price cycle. The move shows how a core industrial reagent is being priced more like a strategic input than a routine by-product, with industrial users facing tighter supply and higher distribution costs.
The shift matters because the Milan figure is the one in the final market, not just at the producer gate. Customs prices stay closer to export or producer levels, but the Milan reading went further, giving a sharper signal of what buyers actually pay when material reaches distribution channels.
Milan Price Above 2022 Peak
Three separate sources point to a sharp rise in sulfuric acid pricing, but the Milan Chamber of Commerce number is the clearest break. On May 5, it moved above the 2022 peak, even as intra-EU customs prices and China FOB customs prices still remained below the highs reached in 2022.
Luigi Bidoia, who published the analysis on May 15, 2026, describes sulfuric acid as progressively shifting from a simple industrial by-product to a strategic resource within the global supply chain. That change in market role is the backdrop for the latest price move, especially for buyers that depend on sulfuric acid as a core reagent rather than as an optional input.
Sulfur Burner Sets the Price
330 kg of sulphur are needed to produce one ton of sulphuric acid, which ties the market directly to the price of sulphur itself. The sulfur burner process depends largely on sulphur prices, and the market price of sulphuric acid is ultimately determined by that route because smelter output is normally not enough to meet total demand.
The smelter route uses sulfur dioxide that is effectively a waste by-product of metal production, but that supply cannot fully cap the market. If the burner route stays expensive, the finished acid follows, because it remains the marginal source needed to balance demand.
Hydrochloric Acid at 90 €/t
90 €/t is the current intra-EU customs price for hydrochloric acid, which can partially substitute for sulphuric acid in several industrial applications. Hydrochloric acid is normally sold at 31–33%, while sulphuric acid is typically sold at 93–98%, and one ton of commercial sulphuric acid contains approximately twice the usable acidity of one ton of commercial hydrochloric acid.
That makes substitution incomplete rather than clean. Industrial buyers that can switch may blunt some of the pressure, but users that need sulphuric acid at high concentration still have to pay the market price set by the burner route and the sulphur input behind it.
The latest move leaves industrial consumers with a tighter procurement picture than the 2022 cycle suggested. Milan has already moved above that peak, and the gap between customs pricing and distribution pricing shows where the strain is showing up first.
