Over the past week, import offer prices for hot dipped galvanized (HDG) coil in the US have continued to decline. After weeks of higher prices, Chinese and Indian offer prices for HDG 0.012"x40.875" G30 and HDG 0.019" x 48" G90 fell slightly a week ago, and have now dropped once again. Trader sources tell SteelOrbis that imports were essentially a non-factor during the past couple months as offshore prices were on the rise while US domestic spot prices faced downward pressure. But even as import prices have started their descent, it has yet to reignite US buyers' interest in booking futures.
US buyers are likely waiting to see how much further import offer prices decline before booking any major tons offshore. Chinese HDG 0.012"x40.875" G30 prices have dropped by another $0.50 cwt. ($11/mt or $10/nt) in the last week and are now between $42.00-$43.00 cwt. ($926-$948/mt or $840-$860/nt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports, with Chinese 0.019" x 48" G90 offer prices dropping by similar levels. Indian prices have also fallen since last week, and are anticipated to drop further in the next few weeks.
| Cwt. | Metric ton (mt) | Net ton (nt) | Change from last week | |
| Import HDG offers to the US | ||||
| 0.012"x40.875" G30 | ||||
| China* | $42-$43 | $926-$948 | $840-$860 | ↓ $0.50 cwt. |
| India* | $43-$44 | $948-$970 | $860-$880 | neutral |
| 0.019" x 48" G90 | ||||
| China* | $42.50-$43.50 | $937-$959 | $850-$870 | ↓ $0.50 cwt. |
| India* | $43.50-$44.50 | $970-$992 | $880-$900 | ↓ $0.50 cwt. |
| Import Galvalume offers to the US | ||||
| 0.019x41.5625 Gr80/AZ55 | ||||
| Mexico** | $44.50-$45.50 | $981-$1,003 | $890-$910 | neutral |
**DDP loaded truck delivered into Houston