During the past week, the Chinese hot rolled coil (HRC) market has continued to move up; however, due to the wait-and-see stance of suppliers and buyers, the overall transaction volume has been limited. In the meantime, some traders have lowered their price by RMB 10/mt ($1/mt) in order to attract more orders.
Product name |
Specification |
Category |
Average price (RMB/mt) |
Weekly change (RMB/mt) |
Price ($/mt) |
Weekly change ($/mt) |
HR |
5.75 mm x 1,500 mm |
Q235B |
4,893 |
+43 |
747 |
+7 |
HR |
2.75 mm x 1,250 mm |
Q235B |
4,973 |
+13 |
759 |
+2 |
On May 3, Q235/S400 5.75 mm hot rolled coil (HRC) prices stand at RMB 4,850/mt ($740/mt), RMB 4,840/mt ($739/mt) and RMB 4,990/mt ($762/mt) respectively in the Shanghai, Tianjin and Lecong markets. In addition, Q235 2.75 mm HRC stands at RMB 4,970/mt ($759/mt), RMB 4,880/mt ($745/mt) and RMB 5,070/mt ($774/mt) respectively in the abovementioned markets. All the above prices include 17 percent VAT (US$1 = RMB 6.51).
After the Labor Day holiday (April 30-May 2), market prices increased slightly, though actual transaction activity has been on the sluggish side. A wait-and-see mood still prevails among traders. In addition, the upward trend in the steel futures market has increased confidence levels in the HRC market.
As for inventory, on April 29 aggregate inventory of hot rolled products in China's main cities came to 4,418,500 mt, down 122,100 mt week on week. On the same date, inventory in Shanghai was 1,591,320 mt, down 29,950 mt week on week.
On May 1, Shagang Steel announced its prices for early May, with its hot rolled coil price rising by RMB 100/mt ($15/mt). As a result, the producer's new price of 5.5 mm x 1, 250 mm Q235 hot rolled coil is at RMB 4,950/mt ($760/mt), while its price of 5.5 mm x 1,250 mm SPHC stands at RMB 4,980/mt ($764/mt). The above prices include 17 percent VAT and are effective from May 1, 2011.
Currently, traders are still not sure of the likely market trend in the coming period. However, energy-saving and emission reduction measures, power rationing, declining inventories, the reduced output volumes of domestic mills as well as the price adjustments by Shagang Steel will all exert an impact on the market. It is expected that the Chinese hot rolled coil market will continue to fluctuate upward in the coming week.