Prices for imported HRC have increased slightly again in Vietnam due to less severe competition. Demand has been moderate. The sole local HRC producer Formosa Ha Tinh has said that it will not make a price announcement for June shipment sales and will switch to direct negotiations with customers.
A deal for 30,000 mt of SAE1006 HRC from Japan has been done at $410-415/mt CFR Vietnam this week, which is higher compared to the previous sale of ex-Japan coils at $398/mt CFR to Vietnam a week ago. Moreover, a cargo of Chinese SAE1006 HRC has been traded at $410/mt CFR Vietnam, up by $2/mt from the deal for HRC of the same origin last week.
Offers for ex-India and ex-China coils have been heard at $410-420/mt CFR, while Japanese suppliers have been asking for $415-420/mt CFR. Most sources have said that buyers have been cautious in purchases and that bids have still been at $405/mt CFR or lower.
The SteelOrbis weekly reference price for imported HRC in Vietnam has increased by $5/mt on average from last week to $405-410/mt CFR.
At the same time, Vietnamese HRC producer Formosa Ha Tinh has faced lower sales and has decided to not announce its monthly prices as usual. Instead the seller will discuss prices with every customer separately, a number of sources confirmed. To deal with the current market situation the company will also decrease steel production in line with lower domestic consumption. Though there have been no official figures, market participants believe that Formosa Ha Tinh will cut output by at least 20 percent.
