Purchasing activity in the UAE’s hot rolled coil (HRC) market has started to improve since some buyers have decided to restock amid the uptrend seen in import offers. Some more deals may be seen in the coming days, market players said.
According to sources, several deals for HRC were concluded to the UAE from India at $560-570/mt CFR, which was the lowest available price level in the market at the time. In addition, around 10,000 mt of HRC have been booked from Japan this week at $580/mt CFR, SteelOrbis has learned. “Demand is moderate. But everyone is buying because stocks are low,” a trader told SteelOrbis.
Following the mentioned deals and also suppliers’ trade to alternative destinations, ex-India offers increased to $590-600/mt CFR for end-of-December and January shipments. Offers from China have also increased. Earlier this week, SS400 material was available at $570/mt CFR, but later offers were raised to $580-595/mt CFR, depending on the supplier.
Meanwhile, both South Korea and Vietnam are providing $575/mt CFR, compared to $580/mt CFR from South Korea two weeks ago when Vietnam was at the same price level.
