During the week ending February 2, a small increase in buying activity was observed in the Chinese hot dip galvanized (HDG) market after prices declined amid lackluster demand. Average HDG prices in the Chinese domestic market can be viewed in the SteelOrbis price reports section.
After the Spring Festival holiday, HDG offers in the domestic market have differed much as traders are giving a variety of offers depending on their inventory levels and expectations for the future trend of the market.
Domestic traders tried to hike their offers in order to test the market as soon as they returned to the market after the Spring Festival holiday. However, due to the lack of booking activity and considering the considerable arrivals of new supplies during the holiday period, most of them started to reduce their offers with the aim of attracting orders. Some increase in purchase activity has been observed following the price reductions. However, as most end-users are expected to resume work only after the Lantern Festival on February 6, transactions are still on the scarce side.
It is expected that the Chinese HDG market will continue to remain quiet in the coming week with prices trending sideways.