China's steel section market has maintained a slight uptrend in the past week.
In the Shanghai market, the price of 50 mm x 50 mm x 5 m steel angles is now at $674/mt. The same product is sold at $666/mt in the Tangshan market and at $697/mt in the Guangzhou market. Meanwhile, prices of 160 mm x 65 mm x 8.5 mm steel channels stand at $675/mt in the Shanghai market, at $670/mt in Tangshan and at $716/mt in the Guangzhou market. In the Shanghai, Tangshan and Guangzhou markets, 250 mm x 118 mm x 10 m I-beam prices stand respectively at $681/mt, $659/mt and $697/mt. The prices are all ex-mill, including 17 percent VAT. Average steel section prices in China can be viewed in the SteelOrbis price reports section.
As for billet, prices in the Chinese market have risen slightly during the past week. In Tangshan, the current price of Q235 150 x 150 mm square billet is at RMB 3,760/mt ($597/mt), the price of 165 x 225 mm rectangular billet stands at RMB 3,790/mt ($600/mt), while the price of 20MnSi billet is around RMB 3,880/mt ($616/mt). The prices are all ex-mill, including 17 percent VAT.
With positive macroeconomic news and the rise in billet prices, domestic mills have raised their quoted prices for steel sections and overall market prices have also started to follow an uptrend. However, downstream demand is still slack and construction activity is still hampered by weather conditions. Accordingly, many observers believe that there is insufficient support for significant upward movement of prices at the current time. Domestic traders remain cautious but hope that the traditionally strong March and April sales season will boost demand in the market.
It is expected that the domestic steel section market in China will fluctuate on a slight upward trend in the short term.