During the week ending May 9, the Chinese domestic hot dip galvanized (HDG) market has continued to trend down. Average HDG prices in the local Chinese market can be viewed in the SteelOrbis price reports section.
On May 9, Chinese steel giant Baosteel announced a further cut in its official offers for flat steel products for June delivery, as expected. Although its prices of galvanized steel products are unchanged, insiders have revealed that the producer will offer a discount of RMB 150/mt ($23.8/mt) based on its May price.
Amid sluggish market conditions, traders are mostly focused on selling off their products, while prices continue to soften. Meanwhile, demand is also less dynamic. With the mills' May production galvanized steel products arriving in the market, traders are under pressure and are adopting a cautious approach.
As regards the future, other leading domestic steel producers will likely follow the example of Baosteel and lower their prices. It is expected that HDG prices in China will continue to soften in the coming period.