The import slab market in Asia has been quiet coming towards the end of the year due to the holidays starting, while buyers are mainly planning to return to negotiation in the middle of January, when the situation in the HRC segment will be clearer.
After the latest price increase by $15/mt to $630/mt CFR in a booking to Taiwan reported last week, no new transitions have been heard so far. One customer also received an offer from a S. Korean producer at $630/mt CFR in the past week. Most sources said that the number of offers is very low. “We see that the commercial activity has already slowed down ahead of the holidays. The slab market will be dead in the coming weeks,” one Asian source said.
Slab importers are first waiting for the next developments in the markets for HRC and other flat steel products. “Asian HRC prices are not so good [as in other regions like the EU and the US]. Demand [for HRC in the local market] in China will go down,” one source commented. Over the past week, the average domestic HRC price in China has dropped by RMB 330/mt ($51/mt), according to SteelOrbis’ data, due to a lack of support from demand. HRC producers from Taiwan and Japan were offering HRC at $730/mt FOB lately, but export trading has been limited. “Local prices [for HRC] in Taiwan are expected to be at about $700/mt ex-works in January,” a local flat steel producer said.
The SteelOrbis reference price for imported slabs in Asia has remained at last week’s level of $630/mt CFR.