Ex-China CRC prices have moved down in the past week amid the sharp fall in HRC futures prices, some declines in raw material prices and sluggish demand.
At present, export offers for CRC given by major Chinese mills are at around $660-690/mt FOB on average, for March shipment, down by $10/mt on the lower end over the past week. Meanwhile, the tradable level for ex-China CRC has been heard at $655-670/mt FOB, moving down by $10/mt over the past week.
During the given week, CRC prices in the Chinese domestic market moved up first amid the increases in HRC futures prices, but retreated later. Inventory of CRC has been at relatively low levels, providing support for prices. At the same time, steel futures prices have seen continuous declines since late last week, significantly worsening the current mood in the CRC market, though they had increased following the New Year holiday (December 30-January 1). Currently, cautious sentiments prevail among downstream users and traders, while steelmakers have been willing to raise their CRC prices.
Average domestic 1.0 mm cold rolled coil spot prices in China are at RMB 4,373/mt ($616/mt) ex-warehouse, decreasing by RMB 30/mt ($4.2/mt) compared to January 3, according to SteelOrbis’ information.
As of January 10, HRC futures at the Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 4,004/mt ($564/mt), decreasing by RMB 156/mt ($22) or down 3.75 percent since January 3, while down 1.23 percent compared to the previous trading day (January 9).
$1 = RMB 7.1055
