Traders have told SteelOrbis that sluggish demand remains the main reason for the softness of offer prices in the local Chinese HDG market. Some traders are lowering their prices in order to speed up sales and bring in funds, while others are maintaining a wait-and-see stance.
According to data issued by China's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), China produced 2.913 million mt of HDG products in February this year, down 6.45 percent month on month but up 9.84 percent year on year. Meanwhile, in the January-February period China's HDG output amounted to 5.968 million mt. No significant improvement in demand has been seen in the domestic and overseas markets, and so the anticipated price rebound has not yet happened. Traders are currently concerned about the prospects for demand in April.
Overall, it is thought that HDG prices in the Chinese domestic market will continue their slight downtrend in the coming seven days.