During the week ending September 17, average hot rolled coil (HRC) prices in the Chinese domestic market have edged down compared to the previous week, while activity in the market has been at low-to-medium levels. Average HRC prices in the local Chinese market are presented in the following table.
| Product name | Specification | Category | Average price (RMB/mt) | Weekly change (RMB/mt) | Price | Weekly change ($/mt) |
| ($/mt) | ||||||
| HRC | 5.75 mm x 1,250 mm x C | Q235B/SS400 | 3,726 | -13 | 527 | -1 |
| HRC | 2.75 mm x 1,250 mm x C | Q235B | 3,843 | -16 | 543 | -2 |
13 percent VAT is included in all prices and all prices are ex-warehouse.
In the given week, inventories of HRC in China have been at relatively high levels, exerting a negative impact on HRC prices in the spot market. HRC futures prices at Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) have fluctuated within a limited range and are up slightly from RMB 3,522/mt on September 10 to RMB 3,529/mt ($499/mt) on September 17, showing an increase of 0.2 percent.
As the National Day holiday (October 1-7) is approaching, market players expect that downstream users might build up stocks ahead of the holiday. It is expected that HRC prices in the Chinese domestic market will move sideways in the coming week.
$1 = RMB 7.073