During the week ending May 31, average hot rolled coil (HRC) prices in the Chinese domestic market have indicated slight downticks, while transaction activity in the overall market has been at low levels. Average HRC prices in the local Chinese market are presented in the following table.
During the given week, due to the declining trend of hot rolled futures prices in the first half of the week, domestic HRC prices moved on a decreasing trend, contributing to bearish sentiment in the market. In the latter part of the week, players in the hot rolled market have mostly held a wait-and-see stance, keeping their prices stable. Inventory levels of HRC in the spot market have risen amid new supplies arriving in the market.
Since demand in the coming summer offseason will be slack, it is thought that HRC prices in the Chinese domestic market will likely continue to soften slightly in the coming week.
Product Name | Spec. | Category | City | Steel Plant/Origin | Price (RMB/mt) | Price ($/mt) | Weekly Change (RMB/mt) |
Medium HRC | 5.75 mm x 1,500 mm x C | Q235B/SS400 | Shanghai | Tangshan Steel | 2,510 | 381 | ↔0 |
Tianjin | Tangshan Steel | 2,450 | 372 | ↑10 | |||
Lecong | Liuzhou Steel | 2,670 | 406 | ↓30 | |||
Average | - | 2,543 | 387 | ↓7 | |||
Thin HRC | 2.75 mm x 1.,250 mm x C | Q235B | Shanghai | Tangshan Steel | 2,730 | 415 | ↓20 |
Tianjin | Tangshan Steel | 2,610 | 397 | ↓10 | |||
Lecong | Lianyuan Steel | 2,850 | 433 | ↑10 | |||
Average | - | 2,730 | 415 | ↓7 |
17 percent VAT is included in all prices and all prices are ex-warehouse.
$1 = RMB 6.58