In the first trading week after the Spring Festival holiday, most domestic HDG traders have been optimistic on the prospects for the future market, with HDG prices in the domestic market accordingly starting to move up upon the return from the holiday. However, the transaction volume is not yet back to normal levels, and this has limited the upward movement of HDG prices. Demand from end-users remains sluggish as many construction sites will not resume normal activity until after the Lantern Festival (February 24). In addition, some downstream users had already stocked sufficient HDG supplies for one month's usage before the holiday, and so their purchasing activity is slow for now.
Overall, whether further increases are seen in HDG prices in the Chinese domestic market depends on the development of real demand. It is expected that local HDG prices in China will move sideways in the coming week as market participants maintain a wait-and-see stance.