Mainstream ex-China steel plate offer prices from mills have been heard at $590-600/mt FOB for February shipment as of today, Monday, December 12, moving up by $20/mt compared to December 5. Reference deal prices have been heard at $570/mt FOB, up by $10-20/mt over the past week, though some large sellers said that they are not ready to go below $580-590/mt FOB to increase sales to South America and Southeast Asia.
During the given week, steel plate prices in the Chinese domestic market have moved up amid the continuous easing of epidemic prevention and control policies and the supporting policy for the real estate industry. Bullish sentiments have prevailed among market players and so they have been willing to bolster offer prices for steel plate. At the same time, iron ore and coal prices have moved up, also providing support for steel plate prices from the cost side. Meanwhile, HRC futures prices have increased, exerting a positive impact on the steel plate market. However, with the approach of the cold winter season, especially in northern China, demand for steel plate will slacken further, which will likely weaken the support for steel plate prices. It is expected that steel plate prices in the Chinese domestic market will likely fluctuate within a limited range in the coming week.
Average Q235 20 mm steel plate spot prices in China have gained RMB 143/mt ($20.5/mt) compared to December 5, standing at RMB 4,136/mt ($594/mt) ex-warehouse, according to SteelOrbis’ information.
As of December 12, HRC futures at the Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 4,036/mt ($580/mt), increasing by RMB 96/mt ($13.8/mt) or 2.4 percent since December 5.
$1 = RMB 6.9565
