China’s PPGI market sees higher prices but stagnant domestic demand

During the past week (May 1-7), the Chinese PPGI market has been stagnant on the domestic side, while it has seen a quite active performance as regards exports. Market prices have risen during the week. Due to the lack of stimulus, prices are expected to trend sideways in the short term, fluctuating within a small range. As of May 7, the average prices of PPGI in the main Chinese cities are as follows:

At the end of the last week, CGCC 0.476 mm x 1,000 mm PPGI was sold in the Shanghai, Guangzhou and Boxing markets at RMB 6,700/mt ($982/mt), RMB 7,500/mt ($1,100/mt) and RMB 6,750/mt ($990/mt) respectively. At the same time, CGCC 0.426 mm x 1,000 mm prices stood respectively at RMB 6,750/mt ($990/mt), RMB 7,600/mt ($1,114/mt) and RMB 8,050/mt ($1,180/mt) in these markets.

Before the May Day holiday (May 1-3), the domestic PPGI market was characterized by a pessimistic atmosphere. During the holiday, due to price increases for semi-finished products, prices of finished steels also followed an upward trend. At present, PPGI inventory is at low levels, while PPGI prices have gone up RMB 100/mt ($15/mt) from the pre-holiday period, though actual transaction prices are lower than offer levels. The price increases have been mainly propelled by some of the domestic mills and traders. Most market players expect that, in the context of higher production costs, domestic sellers will likely raise their offers in spite of the weak market activity.

During the past week, supplies of thin specifications have increased. With regard to thick size products, sales have improved recently.

End-users are now adopting a wait-and-see policy. Some domestic PPGI producers have started to alter their sales policies in order to attract customer interests. For example, some mills have chosen to set a guidline price, with settlement prices determined at the end of the month.