Ex-China CRC prices have moved sideways in the past week amid the ups and downs in HRC futures prices.
At present, export offers for CRC given by major Chinese mills are at around $665-685/mt FOB on average, for January shipment, moving sideways on average from the previous week. Meanwhile, the tradable levels of ex-China CRC prices have been heard at $650-655/mt FOB, also keeping in line compared to those recorded on November 29.
During the given week, HRC futures prices moved down first, weakening the support for sentiments in the CRC market. However, HRC futures were moving up later and inventory of CRC continued its decreasing trend, bolstering prices again. At the same time, demand for CRC from downstream users is still quite good, though market players have started to be cautious as regards the future prospects for the CRC market. Transaction activities have slowed down amid the declining trend, which may exert a negative impact on the CRC market. It is thought that CRC prices in the Chinese domestic market will likely fluctuate within a limited range in the coming week.
Average domestic 1.0 mm cold rolled coil spot prices in China are at RMB 4,344/mt ($612/mt) ex-warehouse, remaining stable compared to November 29, according to SteelOrbis’ information.
As of December 6, HRC futures at the Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 4,028/mt ($567/mt), increasing by RMB 22/mt ($3.1/mt) or up by 0.55 percent since November 29.
$1 = RMB 7.1031
