This week has started with another increase in ex-China HRC prices in Vietnam, given the upward trend in the Chinese domestic HRC market supported by increasing HRC futures prices. However, most buyers have been refraining from new purchases, emphasizing the still unclear price trend. Thus, only a few deals for rather small lots are reported to have been done at higher levels this week.
Specifically, according to sources, a few batches for small quantities of ex-China SAE1006 HRC are reported to have been bought in Vietnam at $570-572/mt CFR, while most ex-China offers have been voiced at $570-575/mt CFR for January shipment, up by $5-10/mt over the past week. Besides, several Chinese first-tier mills have been offering their materials at $575-580/mt CFR Vietnam this week.
At the same time, offers for ex-China Q195 HRC have been reported at around $545/mt CFR, up by $10-15/mt over the past week, with a few deals reported to have been signed at $540-545/mt CFR this week. Meanwhile, offers for SS400 HRC have settled at around $550-555/mt CFR, against $545/mt CFR at the beginning of the week. “Only small orders have been booked this week, as most buyers prefer to wait and see the trend,” a Chinese trader told SteelOrbis.
“I am confused about placing new orders these days as, on the one hand, given the better sentiments in China, they will try to push prices higher, but as long as demand is rather poor, it is hard to believe there will be room for a significant uptrend,” a Vietnamese trader said.
The SteelOrbis reference price for imported SAE1006 HRC based on ex-China offers amid the absence of other suppliers in the market has moved to $570-575/mt CFR, up by $5-8/mt over the past week.