Mainstream ex-China steel plate offer prices from mills have been heard at $660/mt FOB for March shipment as of today, Monday, January 16, moving up by $20/mt compared to January 9.
Reference deal prices have been heard at $640-650/mt FOB to South America and Southeast Asia, also increasing by $10-20/mt compared to last week. Overall demand has been weak and market sources believe that the latest hike was nominal as mills have already started to leave the market ahead of the holiday.
During the given week, HRC futures prices have edged down slightly, signaling cautious sentiments among market players ahead of the Chinese New Year holiday (January 21-27). Most market players have left the market and prepared for the long holiday, resulting in quiet transaction activities in the steel plate market. Meanwhile, steelmakers have gradually halted production activities, resulting in short supply of steel plate in the spot market, which has bolstered prices. It is expected that steel plate prices in the Chinese domestic market will likely fluctuate within a limited range in the coming period.
Average Q235 20 mm steel plate spot prices in China have gained RMB 37/mt ($5.5/mt) compared to January 9, standing at RMB 4,240/mt ($631.6/mt) ex-warehouse, according to SteelOrbis’ information.
As of January 16, HRC futures at the Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 4,133/mt ($616/mt), decreasing by RMB 13/mt ($1.9/mt) or 0.3 percent since January 9.
$1 = RMB 6.7135