During the week ending March 4, prices in the Chinese domestic cold rolled coil (CRC) market have indicated some slight declines, while transaction activity in the market has remained slack. Average CRC prices in the local Chinese market can be viewed in the SteelOrbis price reports section.
During the given week, since inventory levels of CRC in the spot market are at high levels and as demand from downstream users has not regained normal levels yet, some CRC traders have lowered their sales prices by a slight margin. Demand is sluggish and the recent cut in benchmark interest rates by China's central bank has not provided any substantial support for the market. While March is traditionally a strong month for sales, market participants lack confidence in the future prospects for the market. It is expected that CRC prices in the Chinese domestic market will move on a soft trend in the coming week.