That Liuyang factory explosion – is anyone else worried about what this means for next year’s supply?

[Jim Hawkins]

#5782

I know there was already a news article about it on here but I wanted to start a discussion thread cuz this is actually kind of a big deal for anyone who buys fireworks regularly.

37 dead at the Huasheng factory in Guandu back in May. That’s not just tragic, it’s gonna have ripple effects for the whole import chain. I was talking to a guy at my local shop and he said some of his usual suppliers are already warning about shortages for 2027 orders. Apparently the Chinese government is doing this whole safety crackdown now – inspections, shutdowns, the works.

I mean on one hand, good. Nobody should die making fireworks. But on the other hand, if they shut down a bunch of factories for safety violations, what does that do to prices? We’re already seeing $50+ for 500g cakes this year. What’s it gonna look like in 2027?

The shop guy was saying some importers are trying to lock in orders NOW for next year just in case. But with shipping being what it is… man I dunno.

Anyone else hearing similar things from their sources?

[Mike Brenner]

#5783

Man I been saying this for weeks. The Huasheng thing is bad but it’s just the tip of the iceberg. I have a buddy who imports from Hunan and he said at least 4 other factories in the Liuyang area got temporary shutdown notices after the investigation. Not permanently closed, but they’re doing safety audits that take months.

The real problem is gonna be mid-tier stuff. The big factories with good safety records will be fine, they can absorb the demand. But those smaller workshops that make the affordable 200g cakes and the discount assortments? A lot of them are exactly the ones getting inspected. If half of them are offline for 6 months, the budget stuff is gonna get scarce.

I already put in a pre-order with my guy for next year. Locked in 2025 prices before they start adjusting. Might be the smartest thing I did all year tbh.

[Marcus Weber]

#5784

From the European side I can give some perspective. We had a similar situation in 2023 when a factory in Spain had a major incident and the EU tightened CE certification requirements. Prices jumped about 15-20% across the board and some smaller manufacturers never recovered.

But here’s the difference – China’s fireworks industry is massive and pretty resilient. Liuyang alone has like 500+ factories. Even if they shut down 50 of them, that’s only 10%. The bigger issue imo is shipping costs and port congestion, which was already a problem BEFORE the explosion.

What I find interesting is whether this pushes more US importers to diversify. I know some are already looking at factories in Jiangxi province instead of just Liuyang. Could change the whole supply map.

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