During the week ending September 25, prices in the Chinese domestic cold rolled coil (CRC) market have again continued to drop down slightly. Average CRC prices in the local Chinese market can be viewed in the SteelOrbis price reports section.
As market participants indicate, in recent days purchasing activity has recovered in the Chinese domestic CRC market, though, with the National Day holiday (Oct. 1-7) approaching, traders will be inclined to be more cautious.
Despite the temporary recovery of market demand, there is still little chance that local CRC prices will move up in the short term. On the one hand, the market is still under pressure from inventory. According to figures from the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA), in August the CRC output in China reached 5.89 million mt. On the other hand, prices are considered to have risen too rapidly in July and August, and so during the coming period prices will likely move downward as a correction.