Over the past week, the Chinese cold rolled coil (CRC) market has moved down slightly as compared with the previous week. The average CRC prices in the main markets in China are as follows:
Product name |
Specification |
Category |
Average price (RMB/mt) |
Weekly change (RMB/mt) |
Price ($/mt) |
Weekly change ($/mt) |
1.0 mm x 1,250 x C |
SPCC |
5,540 |
-23 |
850 |
-4 |
|
CRS |
1.0 mm x 1,250 x 2,500 |
SPCC |
5,623 |
-7 |
860 |
-1 |
As of May 11, prices of ST12 1.0 mm × 1,250 mm × C CRC stand at RMB 5,520/mt ($847/mt), RMB 5,550/mt ($851/mt) and RMB 5,550/mt ($851/mt) respectively in the Shanghai, Tianjin and Lecong markets. In addition, prices of ST12 1.0 mm × 1,250 mm × 2,500 mm CRS stand at RMB 5,570/mt ($854/mt), RMB 5,700/mt ($874/mt) and RMB 5,600/mt ($859/mt) respectively in the Shanghai, Tianjin and Lecong markets. All the above prices include 17 percent VAT (US$1 = RMB 6.52).
During the past week (May 4-11), the market prices of cold rolled coil in China dropped down in the days up to May 10, and started to maintain a stable trend thereafter.
The ordering cost of 1.0 mm DC01 cold rolled coil for May and June from domestic steel giant Baosteel is at about RMB 5,630/mt ($863/mt), while the current spot market price is at around RMB 5,550/mt ($851/mt). According to feedback from traders, purchasing activity in the market is slow. In addition, the transaction prices of the main specifications of cold rolled coil from other domestic mills are at around RMB 5,450-5,500/mt ($835-843/mt). Generally, the transaction situation in the Chinese cold rolled coil market is not very good at present.
On May 10, Baosteel announced its price policy for June delivery, with its cold rolled products generally remaining unchanged, indicating Baosteel's cautious approach to the market. Meanwhile, China's automotive vehicle sales declined in April this year, both on month-on-month and year-on-year basis. This trend is bad news for demand in the Chinese cold rolled market and also for Baosteel which supplies about half of the Chinese market's needs for automotive sheet. In addition, market insiders consider that the Chinese government's power rationing policy could exert an increasing impact on domestic crude steel production, eventually affecting cold rolled product supplies to a certain extent.
In the short term, the Chinese cold rolled coil market may continue to move down slightly.