Vietnamese HRC importers have continued to push for discounts, signing new deals at lower levels. The market, however, is waiting for a clearer market direction after Chinese suppliers will come back from their holiday next week.
Following a contract for 15,000 mt of ex-Japan SAE1006 HRC signed at $596/mt CFR at the end of last week, market insiders have reported a new deal for ex-Japan coils signed at $587/mt CFR Vietnam this week, with means the prices have dropped by $24-33/mt week on week. “We heard that Japan is very hungry for orders: thus, prices for import SAE1006 HRC in Vietnam have fallen below the $590/mt CFR mark,” a market insider told SteelOrbis.
Meanwhile, the latest offers for ex-China SAE1006 HRC were reported at the end of last week at $580-590/mt CFR, compared to deal prices at $590-595/mt CFR at the beginning of last week, though, according to market insiders, customers aim to book Chinese materials at $575-580/mt CFR in the next round of bookings. At the same time, more bookings for ex-China SS400 HRC have been reported in Vietnam before Chinese suppliers left the market for holidays. In particular, several deals for around 50,000 mt in total of SS400 HRC were signed at $565-570/mt CFR for end of October-November shipments.
In the meantime, offers for ex-India boron-added HRC have been very limited in Vietnam, given “more focus on local sales at much higher prices in India”, according to sources. The indicative offer prices have been voiced at $590-610/mt CFR, mainly the same as last week.
“Despite some business activity, most Vietnamese customers are waiting for China to reopen next week, while for now the market picture is not clear,” a Vietnamese trader said.
The SteelOrbis’ reference price for import SAE1006 HRC has moved to $580-590/mt CFR, down $10-20/mt week on week, given the latest deals signed in the country and the levels of most customers’ bids.
