Following the weakening in the Vietnam’s HRC import market seen last week, prices for import HRC have continued to plunge this week given more aggressive offers from Chinese suppliers. However, according to market insiders, deals have been scarce so far, especially in the SAE1006 HRC segment, while bids for Vietnamese customers for SS400 HRC have fallen to $526/mt CFR by Wednesday, May 24.
Specifically, this week has started with sharp decreases in HRC prices from Chinese traders for Vietnam, with offers for ex-China SS400 HRC on Monday, May 23, at $540/mt CFR, down by $10-15/mt week on week, while several deals were reported at $538/mt CFR. However, by Wednesday, May 24, sources have reported some fresh ex-China SS400 offers at $532-535/mt CFR, with bids falling to $526/mt CFR. “It is risky to make business in the current market, but several deals have been reported as not all believe this downtrend will last long,” a market insider said.
Meanwhile, offers for ex-China SAE1006 HRC have been reported at $560-570/mt CFR, versus $590-600/mt CFR last week, with no deals have been heard so far though.
The decrease in ex-China quotes is explained by the significant drop in HRC futures prices in China, which by Wednesday, May 24, have lost around RMB 224/mt ($32/mt) since May 17, falling to RMB 3,551/mt ($503/mt).
Offers from other foreign suppliers have continued to remain “uncompetitive”, though, according to sources, indicative offers for ex-Japan and ex-Taiwan SAE1006 HRC have dropped to $605-615/mt CFR, compared to $640/mt CFR last week. “We heard offers for ex-Japan HRC at $605/mt CFR this week, but deals may be done at $590-595/mt CFR level,” a market participant told SteelOrbis.
The SteelOrbis’ reference price for imported SAE1006 HRC in Vietnam, has come to $560-590/mt CFR, compared to $590-600/mt CFR last week, with the lower end of range corresponding to the cheapest ex-China offers and with the higher end to the targeted level for ex-Japan coils.