Ex-China CRC prices have indicated another slight increase in the past week following the upward movement of HRC futures prices, though local CRC prices have decreased amid poor demand in the country.
At present, export offers for CRC given by major Chinese mills are at around $635-660/mt FOB, for January shipment, as compared to $630-650/mt FOB last week. Meanwhile, the tradable level of ex-China CRC offer prices has been heard at $625-630/mt FOB, up by $5/mt week on week.
During the given week, CRC prices in the Chinese domestic market have moved down slightly amid slack demand. Besides, as the weather gets colder, especially in northern China, the demand for CRC has not seen significant improvement, exerting a negative impact on prices. Though sentiments have improved in the market, market players have been unwilling to build up stocks. Import iron ore prices have indicated continuous rises, providing support for CRC prices from the cost side.
Average domestic 1.0 mm cold rolled coil spot prices in China are at RMB 4,273/mt ($595/mt) ex-warehouse, decreasing by RMB 17/mt ($2.4/mt) compared to November 1, according to SteelOrbis’ information.
As of November 8, HRC futures at the Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 3,940/mt ($549/mt), increasing by RMB 75/mt ($10.5/mt) or up by 1.9 percent since November 1.
$1 = RMB 7.1773