In early October (October 1-10) this year, the average price in China of 16-25 mm HRB 400 rebar rose by 0.9 percent to RMB 3,849.9/mt ($544.5/mt), compared to prices in late September (September 21-30), as announced by China’s National Bureau of Statistics. In the given period, prices of wire rod gained 0.7 percent, while prices of medium plate, hot rolled coil (HRC), seamless steel pipe and angles lost 0.1 percent, 0.4 percent, 0.7 percent and 0.2 percent respectively, compared to late September.
The performance in finished steel market after the holiday has not been as good as what market players expected for ahead of the long holiday. Meanwhile, ferrous metal futures prices have moved on an overall downtrend in trading days in early October, also weakening the support to finished steel prices, though rebar and wire rod have performed better than other products. However, their rising trends shifted into downtrend amid slower demand and downward movement in iron ore prices in mid-October.