Ex-China CRC prices have been kept stable in the past week mainly due to the uncertainty over the future price trend given the continuous fluctuations of domestic CRC offers, while HRC futures prices have declined this week.
At present, export offers for CRC given by major Chinese mills are at $635-645/mt FOB for November shipment, moving sideways compared to September 13. Meanwhile, the tradable level of ex-China CRC offer prices has remained mainly at around $635/mt FOB, with some occasional offers reported at slightly lower levels.
“The uptrend of HRC futures prices and stock replenishment ahead of the long holiday have positively affected CRC prices,” an international trader told SteelOrbis.
During the given week, CRC prices have seen a rebounding trend amid the increasing trend of HRC futures prices. Meanwhile, market players have been more active in transaction activities, bolstering CRC prices. At the same time, the inventory of CRC has been at relatively low levels, also providing support for prices. Since the long National Day holiday (September 29-October 6) is approaching, downstream users may be willing to replenish stocks, which will exert a positive impact on CRC prices. It is thought that CRC prices in the Chinese domestic market will likely edge up in the coming week.
Average domestic 1.0 mm cold rolled coil spot prices in China are at RMB 4,380/mt ($611/mt) ex-warehouse, increasing by RMB 27/mt ($3.8/mt) compared to September 13, according to SteelOrbis’ information.
As of September 20, HRC futures at the Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 3,932/mt ($548/mt), increasing by RMB 80/mt ($11.2/mt) or up by 2.1 percent since September 13.
$1 = RMB 7.1732