Ex-China HRC offer prices have edged up slightly over the past week due to the support from the high levels of iron ore prices and firm local prices. At the same time, import activity has been weak.
At present, export offers for boron-added SS400 HRC given by major Chinese mills are at $515-520/mt FOB for late November shipment, edging up by $2.5/mt on average compared to Tuesday last week.
A number of deals for small volumes of Chinese HRC have been reported by both some mills and traders at $505-515/mt FOB to South America and Pakistan, according to SteelOrbis, and so exporters have been targeting higher prices, still seeing some support locally.
In Vietnam, Chinese sellers have not been successful in sales, with the lowest offers from traders heard at $525/mt CFR Vietnam, while offers from other sources, from Russia and India, have been at $515-525/mt CFR for October-November shipment.
“Though local HRC prices have indicated slight declines, ex-China HRC prices have seen certain rises, while buyers have mostly been cautious, unwilling to conclude purchases,” an international trader has told SteelOrbis.
During the given week, demand for HRC has been slack in the local market in China as market players have mostly held a wait-and-see stance, resulting in declines in local prices. However, HRC inventory has been at relatively low levels, which will provide support for prices.
Domestic HRC prices in China are at RMB 3,930-4,060/mt ($568-587/mt) ex-warehouse on August 25, with the average price level RMB 20/mt ($2.9/mt) lower as compared to August 18, according to SteelOrbis’ data.
As of August 25, HRC futures at the Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 3,938/mt ($569/mt), decreasing by RMB 46/mt ($6.6/mt) or 1.2 percent since August 18.
$1 = RMB 6.9184
