Prices for imported slabs in Asia have started to go down over the past week, which was expected by market participants, taking into account the visible decline in prices in the HRC segment in the region lately.
The latest tradable price level in Southeast Asia has been assessed by market sources at $670/mt CFR, down from a peak at $685-690/mt CFR a week before. One deal has been reported at the new price level for a Asian slab cargo to Indonesia. “There are rumours that prices from Korean suppliers tend to go down. In this chaos, it is difficult to understand the price level,” a source said.
The highest deal price level for imported slabs in Asia was $685-690/mt CFR for ex-Russia semis in the week ended on January 17. But since HRC prices in the region have dropped sharply over the past two weeks, the decline in the slab segment was inevitable, according to sources.
The import HRC reference price in Vietnam dropped to $670-680/mt CFR last week and it continued to be weak with market sources saying that it has lost another $5-10/mt, coming to $665-670/mt CFR on Monday. In the major countries which are active import slab buyers, flat steel prices are at a higher level, but as the negative trend in the Chinese market has a strong influence on the whole Asian region, weaker sentiment has prevailed in the semis market as well.
The SteelOrbis reference price for imported slabs in Asia has been settled at $670/mt CFR, down from the range of $675-685/mt CFR last week.