US HDG prices stable in advance of Section 232 quota decision

Monday, 14 May 2018 23:57:31 (GMT+3)   |   San Diego
       

US domestic hot dipped galvanized (HDG) and Galvalume coil prices continue to hold stable, but both buyers and sellers believe that “all bets could be off” once the Trump administration makes its final decision regarding Section 232 import tariffs; the decision is expected to come before June 1.

“What we do know is that whatever policy the administration decides, it’s likely to throw the market into a tailspin,” a source said. “But, based on how this White House operates, and all the chaos that surrounded the initial Section 232 announcement, that just because something is policy today that’s not to say it will be policy tomorrow.”

That sentiment has been evidenced by Trump’s action over the weekend, which seems to reverse a decision made last month by the US DOC, which blocked American firms from selling services or products to Chinese smartphone producer ZTE, because the company was found to be evading sanctions on North Korea and Iran.  

In a recent tweet, Trump indicated he wanted to find a way to give ZTE a way back into business fast, because too many Chinese jobs were being lost.

Another source stated it’s “practically impossible to do business in this environment,” because “nothing is set in stone because Washington can’t seem to make up its mind on trade policy.”

  Cwt. Metric Ton (mt) Net ton (nt) Change from last week
US domestic HDG base price $50-$52 $1102-$1146 $1000-$1040 neutral
         
US domestic Galvalume base price        
ex-Midwest mill $50-$52 $1102-$1146 $1000-$1040 neutral
         
0.019x41.5625 Gr80/AZ55        
ex-Midwest mill $60-$62 $1323-$1367 $1200-$1240 neutral

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