During the week ending April 24, hot rolled coil (HRC) prices in the Chinese domestic market have been trending down. Average HRC prices in the main Chinese cities can be viewed in the SteelOrbis price reports section.
At present, due to ongoing soft demand in the downstream market, traders' transaction prices are RMB 10-20/mt ($1-3/mt) lower than their official offers. In the past two weeks, there has been greater activity in the market for low-priced materials than for higher-priced materials.
Currently, it is difficult for traders to push up their prices given the sluggish state of demand. Meanwhile, downstream buyers continue to purchase just in line with their needs. Overall, the market is characterized by slack activity.
It is expected that HRC prices in China will continue to trend down in the coming week.