Ex-China offer prices of cold rolled coil (CRC) have moved up following the Chinese New Year holiday amid the increasing trends in ferrous metal futures prices and in the local market.
At present, export offers for CRC given by major Chinese mills are at $780-800/mt FOB for April shipment, with the average offer prices moving up by $25/mt on average compared to February 10. Production restrictions in Tangshan have bolstered the sentiment in the steel market, which has also exerted a positive impact on ex-China CRC prices. The reference deal price has increased to $780/mt FOB after the holiday, while in the first half of the month mills were ready to provide $750/mt FOB or even below.
Domestic CRC prices have moved up sharply amid the increasing HRC futures prices at Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE). However, some downstream users have not resumed production yet, resulting in low-to-medium transaction activities in the local market. At the same time, the inventory level of CRC has risen slightly. It is thought that CRC prices in the Chinese domestic market will be supported by the revival of demand in the coming week.
Average domestic 1.0 mm cold rolled coil spot prices in China are at RMB 5,613/mt ($869/mt) ex-warehouse, moving up by RMB 277/mt ($43/mt) compared to February 10, according to SteelOrbis’ information.
As of February 24, HRC futures at the Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 4,816/mt ($745.5/mt), increasing by RMB 208/mt ($32.2/mt) or 4.5 percent since February 10.
$1 = RMB 6.4615
