During the week ending October 21, average prices of steel plate in the Chinese domestic market have moved down, while transaction activity in the overall steel plate market has been at low levels. Average steel plate prices in China are presented in the table below.
Product name |
Specification |
Category |
Average Price (RMB/mt) |
Weekly change (RMB/mt) |
Price ($/mt) |
Weekly change ($/mt) |
Common carbon medium plate |
20 mm |
Q235 |
3,703 |
-50 |
524 |
-7 |
Low alloy medium plate |
20 mm |
Q345 |
3,840 |
-45 |
543 |
-6 |
Shipbuilding plate |
20 mm |
CCS A/B |
4,376 |
-33 |
619 |
-4 |
13 percent VAT is included in all prices and all prices are ex-warehouse.
During the given week, inventory levels of steel plate in China have decreased, mainly due to the prevailing bearish sentiments and slack demand causing market players to lower their inventories to avoid potential risks. Meanwhile, rebar futures prices and hot rolled coil (HRC) futures prices are down 1.85 percent and 1.76 percent respectively compared to October 14, falling to RMB 3,290/mt ($473.0/mt) and RMB 3,285/mt ($472.8/mt), exerting a negative impact on the steel market. It is expected that steel plate prices in the Chinese domestic market will again move on a soft trend in the coming week.
$1 = RMB 7.068
