Pakistan’s import HRC market has seen a slight downward adjustment in ex-China prices this week, following a deal concluded late last week. Specifically, offers for Chinese-origin HRC have softened by around $5–10/mt, reflecting limited buying interest and regional price pressure. In contrast, offers from other suppliers have remained largely stable, with recent deal prices for ex-Japan material holding firm at $490–495/mt CFR, indicating continued support at those levels.
More specifically, offers for ex-China Q195 HRC have been voiced at $445-448/mt CFR Pakistan for July-August shipment, down by $8-10/mt over the past two weeks. Besides, offers for ex-China Q235 HRC have been estimated at $450/mt CFR. Meanwhile, ex-China SAE1006 HRC offers have settled at around $470-475/mt CFR, following a deal for 30,000 mt signed at $480/mt CFR last week.
In the meantime, offers for ex-Japan SAE1006 HRC have been voiced at $495/mt CFR, down by $5/mt over the past week. According to sources, a deal for around 30,000 mt of ex-Japan HRC has been signed at $490-495/mt CFR this week, remaining at the same deal price level as was reported two weeks ago.
According to sources, market sentiments have been worsening given further fluctuations in the HRC futures market in China. “Although there has been a slight uptick in futures HRC prices in China, sentiments are far from positive among both sellers and buyers, and Pakistani customers push for additional discounts,” a Pakistani based trader told SteelOrbis.
As of June 17, HRC futures at Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 3,093/mt ($430/mt), increasing by RMB 4/mt ($0.6/mt) or 0.13 percent since June 10, while rising by 0.13 percent compared to the previous trading day, June 16, according to SteelOrbis data.