Ex-China offer prices of cold rolled coil (CRC) have edged up slightly in the past week amid the rising trend in local CRC prices and firm raw material prices.
At present, export offers for CRC given by major Chinese mills are at $500-505/mt FOB for late August, edging up by $5/mt compared to June 3 following the uptrend in the previous week. The reference deal price has been at $480-490/mt FOB to Southeast Asia and South America. Since the price level is high, most steelmakers have chosen to focus on the local market. Overseas demand has been slacker than domestic demand, resulting in quiet activity in the export market, though some small volumes have been sold at around $490/mt FOB.
During the given week, traders have been seeking to raise their local CRC prices due to the high booking prices from steelmakers. Meanwhile, inventory has risen slightly, while shortage of supply still exists for some specifications. Currently, CRC prices are at relatively high levels and so market players are cautious on the prospects for the market.
Average domestic 1.0 mm cold rolled coil spot prices in China are at RMB 4,016/mt ($568/mt) ex-warehouse, up RMB 6/mt ($0.85/mt) compared to June 3, according to SteelOrbis’ information.
As of June 10, HRC futures at the Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 3,516/mt ($497/mt), decreasing by RMB 9/mt ($1.3/mt) or 0.26 percent since June 3.
$1 = RMB 7.0703