NBS: Local Chinese rebar prices down 0.2 percent in mid-August

In mid-August (August 11-20) this year, the average price in China of 16-25 mm HRB 400 rebar decreased by RMB 8.4/mt ($1.2/mt) or 0.2 percent to RMB 3,759.7/mt ($543.4/mt), compared to prices in early August (August 1-10), as announced by China’s National Bureau of Statistics. In the given period, prices of wire rod, medium plate, hot rolled coil (HRC), and seamless steel pipes edged up by 0.1 percent, 0.3 percent, 0.4 percent, and 0.4 percent, respectively, though prices of angles edged down by 0.1 percent, all compared to early August. The high levels of iron ore prices provided solid support for finished steel prices, though the rainy weather in northern China negatively affected construction activities and rebar prices.