As of March 20, average hot rolled coil (HRC) prices in the Chinese domestic market are down slightly compared to one week ago, while activity in the market has remained at low levels. Average HRC prices in the local Chinese market are presented in the following table.
During the given week, HRC futures prices at Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) first increased but later moved back down, influencing the trend of HRC prices in the spot market. Cold weather has hit most regions of China, resulting in slack demand for HRC from downstream users. Inventories in the HRC market have declined, easing the downward pressure on HRC prices. Meanwhile, Liaoning-based steelmaker Angang Steel Co. (Ansteel) and Shanghai-based producer Baoshan Iron and Steel Co. Ltd (Baosteel) have issued their HRC ex-works prices for April shipment, raising their HRC prices by RMB 50/mt ($8/mt), thereby providing support for HRC prices in the spot market. It is thought that HRC prices in the Chinese domestic market will likely move sideways in the coming week.
|
Product Name |
Spec. |
Quality |
City |
Steel Plant/Origin |
Price (RMB/mt) |
Price ($/mt) |
Weekly Change (RMB/mt) |
|
Medium HRC |
5.75 mm x 1,500 mm x C |
Q235B/SS400 |
Shanghai |
Ansteel |
3,930 |
621 |
↑30 |
|
Tianjin |
Ansteel |
3,900 |
616 |
↓20 |
|||
|
Lecong |
Liuzhou Steel |
4,010 |
633 |
↓20 |
|||
|
Average |
- |
3,947 |
623 |
↓3 |
|||
|
Thin HRC |
2.75 mm x 1.,250 mm x C |
Q235B |
Shanghai |
Ansteel |
4,060 |
641 |
↓290 |
|
Tianjin |
Tangshan Steel |
4,050 |
640 |
↓70 |
|||
|
Lecong |
Lianyuan Steel |
4,110 |
649 |
↓20 |
|||
|
Average |
- |
4,073 |
643 |
↓127 |
17 percent VAT is included in all prices and all prices are ex-warehouse.
$1 = RMB 6.33