Indian HRC exporters have sharply increased their offer prices to Vietnam as they are mostly sold out for September shipment and have some better outlook for their domestic market. Vietnamese customers are mainly not ready to accept such a sharp increase, but some rare deals at a higher level than before have been heard in the market.
Offers for Indian HRC SAE1006 have increased by $20/mt on average since last week to $495-505/mt CFR Vietnam for October shipment. Even higher offers at up to $520/mt CFR have been heard for shipment later (November or December) or for very small volumes for September. “Indian mills are all sold out for September. The ones which are not are expecting much higher prices for whatever small quantity they have left for exports,” an international trader told SteelOrbis.
At the same time, bids prices are lagging behind. According to sources, one Indian mill managed to sell a small volume of HRC at $485/mt CFR last week and there is also information about a deal at $482/mt CFR. These deal prices are higher than bids at $470/mt CFR heard last week. But sources said that most buyers are staying away from purchases so far, as they are not ready to accept price increases in such an unsustainable market, taking into account the growing number of Covid-19 cases in Vietnam. Since July 25, when new cases started to appear, 204 new infections have been registered, mainly in the region near to the coastal city of Da Nang.
Offer prices of ex-South Korea HRC have been heard at $500/mt FOB, which corresponds to around $520/mt CFR Vietnam. Ex-China HRC is available at $515/mt CFR minimum.
The SteelOrbis reference price for imported billet in Vietnam has increased by $10-15/mt to $480-485/mt CFR. This price level is also in line with the latest bids from China, sources have said.