Following the weakening in Vietnam’s HRC import market last week and at the beginning of this week, import HRC prices have continued to plunge. At the same time, by Wednesday, February 28, local producer Formosa Ha Tinh Steel (FHS), has revised its offers downwards for domestic customers following its initial price announcement on Friday, February 23.
More specifically, FHS has started to provide additional discounts of around $10/mt for big local buyers. In particular, for 10,000-20,000 mt mt orders, FHS’s new price stands at $602/mt CIF, while for big orders of above 20,000 mt the price is at $598/mt CIF. Meanwhile, prices for smaller volumes have remained at the same level as initially announced last week, or at $608-620/mt CIF, depending on the quality of HRC. “HRC exports are not good, so Formosa has to sell more volumes locally, so big customers will have more discounts,” a market insider said.
In the meantime, offers for ex-China SS400 HRC in Vietnam have been heard at $550-555/mt CFR, down by $5/mt week on week, while offers for Q195 HRC have stood at $545-548/mt CFR levels, following several deals signed a few days ago at $538-545/mt CFR. Firm offers for SAE1006 HRC have been rare in Vietnam, with indicative offers for ex-China coils estimated at $585-590/mt CFR for April shipment, down by $5/mt week on week, while most bids have been estimated at below $580/mt CFR.
Other suppliers have been staying out of the Vietnamese market, with indicative prices for ex-Japan SAE1006 HRC heard at $620/mt CFR, while offers from India have remained at $615-620/mt CFR, the same as last week.
The SteelOrbis reference price for import SAE1006 HRC has moved to $585-590/mt CFR, down by $5-10/mt week on week, based on the indicative offers for ex-China HRC.