Ex-China offer prices of cold rolled coil (CRC) have moved up amid the rising trend in local CRC prices, but only rare offers have been available in the market as most suppliers are out of the export market, awaiting the final announcement of the anticipated export tax rebate cut.
At present, export offers for CRC given by major Chinese mills are at $835-855/mt FOB for May shipment, with the average offer prices moving up by $15/mt on average compared to March 17.
The workable deal prices for suppliers are at $820-830/mt FOB, up by $10/mt over the past week, though no contracts have been reported to Southeast Asia and South America.
“Only a few steelmakers have given export offer prices and have raised offer prices by $15/mt for CRC, as most of them have been waiting for the actual news of the export tax rebate cut, while buyers in overseas markets have mostly held a wait-and-see stance,” an international trader told SteelOrbis.
During the given week, HRC futures prices in China have moved on an overall rising trend, bolstering CRC prices in the local spot market. Meanwhile, downstream users have been cautious as regards concluding purchases of CRC. However, inventory of CRC has been at a relatively low level, exerting a positive impact on prices.
Average domestic 1.0 mm cold rolled coil spot prices in China are at RMB 5,656/mt ($867.5/mt) ex-warehouse, moving up by RMB 70/mt ($10.7/mt) compared to March 17, according to SteelOrbis’ information.
As of March 24, HRC futures at the Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 5,161/mt ($792mt), increasing by RMB 177/mt ($27/mt) or 3.55 percent since March 17.
$1 = RMB 6.5228
