During the week ending May 14, Chinese export offers of flat steel products have followed a stable trend. At present, boron-added hot rolled coil (HRC) export offers given by Chinese suppliers are at $360-370/mt FOB, with actual transaction prices in the range of $360-365/mt, while cold rolled coil (CRC) export offers given by Chinese suppliers are at $415-435/mt FOB, with actual transaction prices in the range of $415-420/mt.
The recent rebound in iron ore prices has provided a certain degree of support for Chinese domestic and export prices of finished steel. During the given week, some Chinese suppliers have tried to increase their flat steel offer prices, though buyers in the international market resisted any increases, mainly due to slack demand in the global market and strong competition from lower-priced products from the CIS.