Even if the majority of Emirati consumers are still unsatisfied with trade in the local market, notably in the construction industry due to the extreme heat and the summer season, there was significant interest from UAE buyers in Chinese goods last week but import activity has again become silent this week. However, industry participants foresee more interest in HRC imports as Japanese producers have dropped offers almost to the Chinese levels this week. Meanwhile, Indian and South Korean suppliers have remained focused on their own markets and have withdrawn their offers to the UAE.
According to reports, while the UAE bought about 60,000 mt of HRC at $550-555/mt CFR for August shipment last week, there have been no fresh deals this week and offers for SS400 grade have remained at $550-560/mt CFR UAE. Furthermore, this week, sources said that the Q235 grade has been offered to GCC ports at $550-$555/T CFR.
Japanese suppliers, on the other hand, have decided to come back to the UAE market, offering HRC at $555/mt CFR for September shipment. The most recent offers from Japan had been $570-575/mt CFR to the UAE.
Amid continuously improving demand in their domestic markets, South Korean and Indian suppliers, in contrast to those in China and Japan, are not offering HRC to the UAE.