Demand situation still uncertain in local Chinese HRC market

During the week ending April 1, hot rolled coil (HRC) prices in the Chinese domestic market have indicated slight rises. Demand has been improving slowly and transaction activity is at better levels. Average HRC prices in the local Chinese market can be viewed in the SteelOrbis price reports section.

In the given week, some HRC traders have pushed up their selling prices amid the improvement in transaction activity, while some traders have suspended sales for the moment, waiting for higher market prices. Meanwhile, other traders are more cautious as regards the future prospects for the market.

Since the launch of HRC futures at Shanghai Futures Exchange on March 21, HRC futures prices have been moving up steadily, exerting a positive impact on the domestic HRC spot market. However, the demand situation in the HRC market still remains uncertain and this may limit the upward movement of HRC prices. It is expected that HRC prices in the Chinese domestic market will maintain their slight uptrend in the coming week.