By the middle of March, all overseas traditional suppliers of hot rolled coil (HRC) to Pakistan have issued their offers. Pakistani buyers, in their turn, have not been in a hurry to book material, preferring to watch market developments closely. “Here, market sentiments are positive, with demand being quite high. However, the market is still in the middle of confusion,” a key Pakistan-based HRC buyer commented with regard to the current situation.
Accordingly, new offers from South Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam have been voiced at $830/mt CFR Karachi, while some higher prices have been heard from alternative suppliers. In particular, following initial offers at $840/mt CFR Karachi at the beginning of the current week, Japanese exporters have increased their offers even further, to $850/mt CFR Karachi. There is information circulating in the market that one Pakistani re-roller booked 10,000 mt of ex-Japan HRC at $835/mt CFR Karachi, for the end of May/beginning of June delivery, though this has not been confirmed by the time of publication.
At the beginning of the current week, ex-China SAE1006 HRC was offered largely at $810-815/mt CFR Karachi, with a few cargoes available at $760/mt CFR Karachi from traders’ positions. However, almost all China-based suppliers have now withdrawn their offers to their export destinations and, in particular to Pakistan, ahead of a possible export tax rebate cut.