Following its hot rolled coil (HRC) and cold rolled coil (CRC) counterparts, domestic transaction prices for some hot dipped galvanized (HDG) products has begun to soften slightly, as increased mill capacity and short lead times have resulted in a greater likelihood of obtaining deals below mills' asking price.
While inventories of HDG continue to remain low, lackluster demand for this particular product, compounded with short lead times and the recent softening of HRC and CRC, has finally begun to impact spot transaction offers for most (but not all) galvanized and Galvalume products. While there are some bright spots within the relatively murky galvanized marketplace, such as stable activity within the automotive sector and a May 4 report by Appliance Magazine that shipments of HVAC systems for the month of March increased slightly (largely tied to increased activity within the construction sector); although orders are steady, overall activity is not classified as being strong. So for now, until demand increases and/or lead times lengthen out, the forecast is that transaction prices for galvanized products will trend neutral if not slightly down from spot prices reported within the past month.
HDG base spot transaction prices have softened by $1.00 cwt. ($22/mt or $20/nt) since our last report a week ago, with offers now being seen in the approximate range of $39.00 cwt. to $41.00 cwt. ($860/mt to $904/mt or $780/nt to $820/nt), ex-Midwest mills, although transactions below that range have been reported.
0.012" x 40.875" G30 (0.30 mm x 1.04 m), has also softened slightly, with the low end of spot pricing having decreased by $1.00 cwt. ($22/mt or $20/nt). Offers for this product are now being reported in the approximate range of $52.00 cwt. to $54.00 cwt. ($1,146/mt to $1,191/mt or $1,040/nt to $1,080/nt), ex-Midwest mills.
Offerings for 0.019" x 48" G90 (0.48 mm x 1.219 m), though, have remained neutral since our last report a week ago and continue to be seen in the approximate range of $51.00 cwt. to $53.00 cwt. ($1,124/mt to $1,168/mt or $1,020/nt to $1,160/nt). Deals, however, may be available to the right customer for the right tonnage.
Shifting focus to Galvalume coil, the low end of the range for spot prices has softened by $1.00 cwt. ($22/mt or $20/nt) since our last report and can now be found in the approximate range of $40.00 cwt. to $42.00 cwt. ($882/mt to $926/mt or $800/nt to $840/nt), ex-Midwest mills.
Offers for 0.019" x 41.5625" Gr80/AZ55, though, have remained neutral and are still being reported in the approximate range of $51.00 cwt. to $54.00 cwt. ($1,146/mt to $1,191/mt or $1,040/nt to $1,080/nt), ex-Midwest mills.
As far as overseas imports, interest has grown increasingly weak as already-unattractive offers have either trended sideways or increased.
Offers for HDG 0.019" x 48" G90 (0.48 mm x 1.219 m) have remained in the approximate range of $55.00 cwt. to $56.00 cwt. ($1,213/mt to $1,235/mt or $1,100/nt to $1,020/nt) out of India, although Chinese offers for that same product have increased by $3.00 cwt. ($66/mt or $60/nt), now being reported in the approximate range of $52.00 cwt. to $53.00 cwt. ($1,146/mt to $1,168/mt or $1,040/nt to $1,060/nt), both FOB loaded truck US Gulf ports.
Switching to HDG 0.012" x 40.875" G30 (0.30 mm x 1.04 m), offers out of India have increased by approximately $1.00 cwt. ($22/mt or $20/nt) since last week and are now being seen at approximately $54.00 cwt. to $55.00 cwt. ($1,191/mt to $1,213/mt or $1,080/nt to $1,100/nt); and offerings for that same product out of China have increased by the same margin, with pricing now being seen in the approximate range of $50.00 cwt. to $51.00 cwt. ($1,102/mt to $1,124/mt or $1,000/nt to $1,020/nt); both FOB loaded truck US Gulf ports.
Looking at Galvalume 0.019" x 41.4625" Gr80/AZ55 , import offers out of India have remained neutral and can still be found in the approximate range of $56.00 cwt to $57.00 cwt. ($1,235/mt to $1,257/mt or $1,120/nt to $1,140/nt) out of India, FOB loaded truck US Gulf ports. Offerings out of Mexico for the same product have also become available, and are have been reported in the range of $54.00 cwt. to $55.00 cwt. ($1,191/mt to $1,213/mt or $1,080/nt to $1,100/nt), delivered to US border states.
Data from the US Steel Import Monitoring and Analysis System (SIMA) demonstrate that the total import tonnage of HDG has decreased from 138,107 mt (preliminary census data) in March to 104,404 mt (license data) in April. The only significant offshore importers for HDG were Korea, at 12.515 mt; and Taiwan, at 10,518 mt.