The global hot-rolled coil (HRC) market remained subdued this week, with demand staying weak across key regions and price movements largely limited. Chinese export sentiment was stagnant post-holiday amid weak demand and stable offers. In Vietnam, Hoa Phat lowered domestic HRC prices in response to persistent demand weakness. Meanwhile, Indian HRC offers to the Middle East remained firm despite limited buyer interest, reflecting producers' efforts to maintain pricing. In Europe, HRC prices held steady even as demand stayed weak, while import activity picked up slightly but remained subdued overall. Furthermore, in the UAE, HRC import demand remained quiet, with offers largely unchanged.
Following the Labor Day holiday, sentiment in China’s HRC export market has failed to recover, with business activity remaining lackluster and prices largely stable or slightly down. Domestic HRC prices have fluctuated within a narrow range week-on-week, while futures have shown mild declines, adding to the cautious mood. Export offers for boron-added SS400 HRC from major Chinese mills currently stand at $455–475/mt FOB, with the average at $465/mt FOB, down by $2.5/mt from last week. Some mills have lowered their offers to around $455/mt FOB, while smaller mills are quoting slightly firmer prices at $455–460/mt FOB, up $3/mt on the lower end. Tradable prices for ex-China SS400/Q235 HRC remained at $450–460/mt FOB. Offers for ex-China Q235 HRC 2,000 mm to Vietnam have been heard at $475–478/mt CFR, up slightly from $470–472/mt CFR last week, while in the Middle East, ex-China SS400 HRC offers have been stable at $490–495/mt CFR, though no deals have been reported, with buyers aiming for levels around $485/mt CFR.
Vietnam’s Hoa Phat Group has cut local HRC prices for June–July shipments by around $13/mt from early April levels, citing weak domestic sentiment and uncertainty in the import market. Current offers stand at VND 13,360–13,390/kg ($512–513/mt) CIF, depending on region. Meanwhile, on the import side, ex-China Q235 HRC offers rose slightly to $475–478/mt CFR. However, demand for SAE1006 HRC remains limited due to duty-related costs, despite indicative prices at $490–495/mt CFR. Indonesian SAE1006 HRC offers stayed stable at $508–510/mt CFR, with some reported at $520/mt, while ex-Japan levels were heard around $510/mt CFR. SteelOrbis reference prices moved up to $490–505/mt CFR, compared to $485–505/mt CFR last week.
Indian HRC export offers have shown a modest upward trend for the Middle East, but no deals have been concluded as aggressive ex-China pricing continues to dominate the region. Besides, Indian mills have shown limited interest in exports, focusing instead on domestic market growth. Indicative ex-India offers to the Middle East have moved up to $520–530/mt FOB, compared to last week’s $500–520/mt FOB. However, deals failed to materialize as ex-China HRC continues to be offered at significantly lower levels of $485–495/mt CFR. In contrast, offers to Europe have remained stable, with limited but confirmed deals. Large Indian mills maintained prices at $580–590/mt FOB, with one eastern mill, reportedly selling at $640/mt CFR Antwerp (approx. $585/mt FOB), and another confirming a 12,000 mt sale at $635–640/mt CFR Rotterdam. While Indian suppliers have found some success in Europe, volumes remain modest, and the long-term viability of such sales is uncertain given global competition.
HRC demand in Europe remained weak this week, with little improvement expected as seasonal consumption slows through the summer months. Domestic prices held mostly steady, supported by decent mill order books, though room for negotiation exists on larger volumes. In northern Europe, mill offers for July deliveries stayed at €670–700/mt ex-works, while tradable values softened slightly to €640–655/mt. In Italy, official offers were largely at or below €650/mt ex-works, with some deals reported as low as €610/mt. Import interest remained modest. Most ex-Indonesia HRC offers ranged from €530–550/mt CFR southern Europe, with some talk of €500-520/mt CFR at the end of this week. Trial offers from Malaysia at €500/mt CFR Italy were heard, though without concluded deals. A confirmed ex-Turkey deal was reported at €540/mt CFR, including duty, though talk about ex-Turkey deal prices through traders and with extras has also been circulating in Spain at €585/mt CFR, including duty.
In the UAE, since the domestic market demand has been slow, the majority of Emirati buyers has continued to delay their purchases over the past week. Meanwhile, HRC import offers remained mainly unchanged, although certain Chinese suppliers continued to offer lower prices in order to grab the customer's interest. As reported, Chinese suppliers for SS400 have made the same offers as last week at $490-495/mt CFR for June shipping. However, certain Chinese suppliers have also made lesser offers of $480-485/mt CFR. After selling some lots to the UAE before, Japanese suppliers have shown similar stability, offering a relatively stable price of $495-500/mt CFR for shipping in July. Indian suppliers, on the other hand, have maintained offering the highest prices in the market, which has led to no interest among Emirati customers. According to reports, India's offers to the GCC are around $520-530/mt FOB.