Mainstream ex-China steel plate offer prices from mills have mostly been heard at $560-565/mt FOB as of today, Monday, November 30, moving up by $2.5/mt on average week on week amid the firm trend locally and increasing raw material prices.
Deal prices have been heard at $555/mt FOB to Southeast Asia, moving up by $5/mt on average from the previous week. As SteelOrbis reported earlier, last week prices in contracts rose by $15/mt.
During the given week, rising HRC futures prices in China have exerted a positive impact on the steel plate market. However, downstream users have started to be cautious due to the current high levels of steel plate prices. Currently, inventory of steel plate is relatively low, which will bolster prices. It is thought that steel plate prices in the Chinese domestic market will likely fluctuate within a limited range in the coming week.
Average Q235 20 mm steel plate spot prices in China have edged up by RMB 23/mt ($3.5/mt) week on week to RMB 4,086/mt ($621/mt) ex-warehouse, according to SteelOrbis’ information.
As of November 30, HRC futures at the Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 4,175/mt ($635/mt), increasing by RMB 164/mt ($25/mt) or 4.1 percent since November 23.
$1 = RMB 6.5782