The steel section market in China has maintained its downward movement in the past week.
In the Shanghai market, the price of 50 mm x 50 mm x 5 m steel angles is now at $568/mt. The same product is sold at $505/mt in the Tangshan market and at $588/mt in the Guangzhou market. Meanwhile, prices of 160 mm x 65 mm x 8.5 mm steel channels stand at $571/mt in the Shanghai market, at $513/mt in Tangshan and at $615/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 $576/mt, $528/mt and $588/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 continued to follow a downward trend in the past week. In Tangshan, the current price of Q235 150 x 150 mm square billet is at RMB 2,890/mt ($456/mt), the price of 165 x 225 mm rectangular billet stands at RMB 2,920/mt ($461mt), while the price of 20MnSi billet is around RMB 3,010/mt ($475/mt). The prices are all ex-mill, including 17 percent VAT.
The main reasons for the ongoing downtrend in the Chinese domestic steel section market, as stated by traders, are reduced trade volumes and strong price competition. Under pressure to pay loans to banks at the current time, traders have no choice but to reduce prices in order to sell off stocks and bring in cash, even though downstream demand for steel sections is quite weak. Meanwhile, the ongoing decreases in billet prices have also been a factor in the downtrend of steel section prices, especially in the relatively large decreases announced in steel section quotations by mills in central China. Analysts state that the steel section market in China will continue its soft trend in the coming week, adding that currently it is still hard to see the bottom.