Weak finished steel demand in Vietnam and the still bearish outlook have pushed HRC importers to look for lower prices. As a result, new bookings of ex-Russia HRC have been reported to Vietnam, as this material is the most attractive in terms of prices for customers.
SteelOrbis has confirmed a total sales of 35,000 mt of SAE1006 HRC from Russia at $908-910/mt CFR Vietnam this week. According to market sources, a trader has been offering 60,000 mt of ex-Russia HRC in total and the final booking volumes may be higher. “Vietnamese buyers may consider only lower prices now as the pandemic is still severe here,” a source said.
Vietnam extended strict curbs on movements in Ho Chi Minh City and another 18 cities from August 2 until August 16. The outbreak of Covid-19 since early July has hit the market in Vietnam hard. The total new cases have grown by 85 percent over the past month. The record for new cases was seen on July 30 at 8,649 infections, while the total number reached 137,000 cases.
Ex-Russia HRC prices have been the most attractive in the import market in Vietnam lately. Indian producers have been offering at $925-930/mt CFR, stable week on week. Market sources said that it is possible to get $920/mt CFR for re-rolling HRC from India, but in the current market Indian exporters are choosing rather to sell to other destinations like the Middle East and Turkey, where the latest tradable levels were at $970-980/mt CFR.
Most offers from China have not been below $1,000/mt CFR, totally out of the range of interest of buyers. Moreover, the issue of the possible introduction in China of export duty on HRC at 10-20 percent still persists, with no announcement yet.
The reference price for imported SAE1006 HRC in Vietnam has been at $908-920/mt CFR this week, down by $11/mt on average from last week.