South Korean distributors of rebars are expecting demand for their products to pick up again once the rainy season is over.
South Korean rebar distributors suffered from a shrinkage of their transaction volume and a fall in distribution market prices for rebars during the summer vacation period and the seasonal rainy spell, but are anticipating that demand for rebar will increase again if constructors resume their delayed works after the rainy season is over.
According to data from South Korea's Ministry of Land, Transportation and Maritime Affairs, the area for which construction permits were granted in South Korea increased by 2.5 percent in the first half of this year compared with a year ago, together with a year-on-year rise of 3.2 percent in the commencement of new construction works. In this connection, those distributors of rebars who have experienced a hard time in July and August due to weak demand for products are expecting that demand for rebars will make a recovery in September.
Meanwhile, the standard price for rebars with diameter of 10mm in cash deals has become KRW 850,000/mt ($785/mt) after steelworks' shrinkage of their rebar price discounts at the end of last month, whereas the distribution market prices for rebar have been staying in a range of KRW 800,000-810,000/mt ($739-749/mt) since the middle of August after showing a rise to a range of KRW 810,000-820,000/mt for a while in the previous period. However, distributors are expecting that the market prices for rebars will increase again, if demand picks up.