Although ex-China HRC price from mills have held relatively stable or have shown only a slight downward bias this week, Chinese traders have failed to keep their offers unchanged, with several new deals emerging with additional discounts. Traders report that buyers in regions including Asia, the Middle East, South America and Africa have been actively seeking Chinese HRC and overseas interest has been reflected in bids in the range of $425-440/mt FOB, with the upper end of the range seen as potentially acceptable for deals.
Specifically, the price range for boron-added SS400 HRC from large Chinese mills has been estimated at $460-480/mt FOB, with a midpoint at $470/mt FOB, for December shipment, down by $2.5/mt over the past week. Meanwhile, offers from smaller mills have been voiced mainly at $450-460/mt CFR, versus 460-465/mt CFR last week.
At the same time, offers from most Chinese traders have moved to $450-460/mt CFR, compared to $460-465/mt CFR last week, while, according to sources, offers from non-VAT traders have been voiced at as low as $440-445/mt FOB, down by $5-10/mt week on week.
In particular, ex-China 2,000 mm Q235 HRC offers in Vietnam have been voiced at $470/mt CFR, down by $2-3/mt week on week. Besides, according to sources, several deals for around 20,000 mt in total of ex-China Q235 HRC 1,500 mm, which is subject to antidumping duty, have been signed at $440/mt FOB or around $453/mt CFR Vietnam.
Meanwhile, Chinese offers for SS400 HRC to other destinations like the Middle East have settled at $480-490/mt CFR UAE from traders, compared to $485-495/mt CFR last week. Besides, Chinese Q195 HRC offers to Turkey have been estimated at $480-485/mt CFR from Chinese suppliers with VAT, while offers from non-VAT Chinese sellers have been estimated at around $475/mt CFR, down by $5-10/mt week on week, while a number of sources have reported even lower offers at $470/mt CFR Turkey.
In the meantime, average HRC prices in the Chinese domestic market have decreased compared to the previous week amid declining HRC futures prices. In particular, domestic HRC prices in China are at RMB 3,310-3,410/mt ($466-480/mt) ex-warehouse on November 11, with the average price level RMB 30/mt ($4.2/mt) lower compared to that recorded on November 4, according to SteelOrbis’ data.
During the given week, HRC prices in the Chinese domestic market have indicated decreases amid the bearish sentiments among market players. Demand for HRC from downstream users has not seen significant improvement, resulting in quiet transaction activity. Downstream buyers have concluded purchases as needed, negatively affecting HRC prices. However, another round of hikes in coke prices may be implemented this Friday, which would provide support for HRC prices from the cost side.
As of November 11, HRC futures at Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 3,242/mt ($457/mt), decreasing by RMB 23/mt ($3.2/mt) or 0.7 percent since November 4, while rising by 0.03 percent compared to the previous trading day, November 10.
| Product | Spec | Quality | City | Origin | Price（RMB/mt） | W-o-w change |
| HRC | 5.75mm x 1,500 x C | Q235B/SS400 | Shanghai | Angang | 3,410 | -30 |
| Tianjin | Baotou Steel | 3,310 | -40 | |||
| Lecong | Liuzhou Steel | 3,400 | -20 | |||
| Avg | 3,373 | -30 | ||||
| HRC | 2.75mm x 1,250 x C | Q235B | Shanghai | Angang | 3,520 | -30 |
| Tianjin | Baotou Steel | 3,370 | -40 | |||
| Lecong | Angang | 3,480 | -20 | |||
| Avg | 3,457 | -30 |
$1 = RMB 7.0866