Following the declines in import HRC prices seen in Vietnam last week, this week most import offers, for ex-China HRC in particular, have continued to move down following the weakening of futures prices in China. Thus, several deals for ex-China coils have been reported at discounted levels in Vietnam this week, but mainly for pipe-making HRC, while re-rollers have been avoiding ex-China purchases due to antidumping duty-related risks, and some have even agreed to pay higher for ex-Indonesia SAE1006 HRC.
More specifically, while most offers for ex-China Q235 HRC have been voiced at $485/mt CFR, down by $5/mt week on week, at least 10,000 mt of ex-China Q235 HRC are reported to have been sold in Vietnam at $480/mt CFR for late January-early February shipment. Besides, another deal for around 7,000 mt of ex-China Q195 HRC has been signed at $475-476/mt CFR, while Q195 HRC offers have been voiced at $480/mt CFR.
In the SAE1006 HRC segment, most offers from Chinese suppliers have been estimated at $500/mt CFR, down by $5-10/mt week on week, while talk about lower offers at $490-495/mt CFR from non-VAT traders has also been circulating in the market. However, while interest in ex-China SAE1006 HRC has been minimal in Vietnam, market insiders have reported an ex-Indonesia deal for about 20,000 mt of SAE1006 HRC at $520/mt CFR. “The price seems high but it is still safer to buy from Indonesia as all expect the announcement of duty against ex-China HRC already by January,” a market insider said.
The SteelOrbis reference price is now at $495-520/mt CFR, versus $500-510/mt CFR last week, with the lower end of the range corresponding to the most competitive offers from China, while the higher end corresponds to the deal price for ex-Indonesia coils reported this week.