Ex-China HRC offer prices have moved up further amid the rising trend in the ferrous futures market, bolstered by good economic data and the quickly rising trend in local HRC prices.
At present, export offers for boron-added SS400 HRC given by major Chinese mills are at $505-515/mt FOB for late October shipment, moving up by $17.5/mt on average compared to last week following a slightly rising trend seen in the previous week.
“China’s National Bureau of Statistics issued the purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for July, which was at 51.1 percent, up 0.2 percentage points month on month, signaling firm economic development and boosting market players’ sentiments in financial markets and exerting a positive impact on the steel industry. Meanwhile, with the quick rises in ex-China HRC prices, buyers in the international market have been unwilling to accept these increases,” an international trader told SteelOrbis.
Offer prices of ex-India HRC have been heard at $495-505/mt CFR Vietnam recently, also up sharply from last week, but rare deals have been heard at only $480-485/mt CFR Vietnam. Some buyers have still been bidding at $470/mt CFR Vietnam. Offer prices of ex-South Korea HRC have reached $500/mt FOB.
Last week, 10,000 mt of ex-China HRC SS400B HRC was sold through a trading company at $505/mt CFR LO. For now, offers have increased to $520/mt CFR minimum.
During the given week, there were limited HRC allocations in the Chinese spot market for sale, bolstering prices. Meanwhile, HRC futures prices at Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) have moved on an overall rising trend, exerting a positive impact on market players’ sentiments.
Domestic HRC prices in China are at RMB 3,900-4,060/mt ($559-582/mt) ex-warehouse on August 4, with the average price level RMB 95/mt ($13.6/mt) higher as compared to July 28, according to SteelOrbis’ data.
As of August 4, HRC futures at the Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 3,920/mt ($562/mt), increasing by RMB 133/mt ($19.1/mt) or 3.5 percent since July 28.
$1 = RMB 6.9803