Ex-China cold rolled coil (CRC) prices have continued to increase over the past week following further hikes in HRC futures prices and better sentiments in the local market.
At present, export offers for CRC from China are in a range of around $545-555/mt FOB, for September shipment, compared to $535-545/mt FOB last week. Meanwhile, the tradable levels for ex-China CRC have been heard at $540-550/mt FOB, versus the range of $530-535/mt FOB recorded last week.
During the given week, the average CRC prices in the Chinese domestic market have continued their uptrend amid increasing HRC futures prices. Several government departments in China jointly issued a draft revision of the Implementation Regulations of the Price Law for public comment, signalling the entry of a new round of supply-side structural reforms into a new phase of legalization and standardization, which bolstered market sentiments. However, the demand for CRC has been slack in the traditional off-season, especially amid the impact of heavy rains in many regions of China.
Average domestic 1.0 mm cold rolled coil spot prices in China are at RMB 3,627/mt ($508/mt) ex-warehouse, increasing by RMB 44/mt ($6.2/mt) compared to July 23, according to SteelOrbis’ information.
As of July 30, HRC futures at Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 3,483/mt ($487/mt), increasing by RMB 45/mt ($6.3/mt) or 1.3 percent since July 23, while increasing by 0.81 percent compared to the previous trading day, July 29.
$1 = RMB 7.1441