Following three consecutive months of HRC price hikes, this month Vietnamese HRC producer Hoa Phat Group has announced its new prices for HRC deliveries in April and May, decreasing them by around $27-30/mt over the past month. The decision has been attributed to slow demand in the country and is in line with market sources’ expectations, as import quotations, especially those for ex-China HRC, have failed to recover in new deals, while most buyers’ bids have been moving down.
Specifically, on February 1, Hoa Phat’s prices for non-skin passed SAE1006 and SS400 HRC for April and May delivery have been announced at VND 14-970-15,000/kg ($610-615/mt) CIF, where the lower end of the range corresponds to the prices in northern and central Vietnam, while the higher price is found in the south. Thus, the current price is around $27-30/mt lower than last month and it is the first downward correction of the mill since October 2023.
The decision to decrease prices has been expected as most traders have started to lose confidence, seeing the weakening of the Chinese market ahead of the long Lunar New Year holiday. The latest offers for ex-China SS400 HRC have been estimated at $565/mt CFR, against $565-570/mt CFR last week, while, although most ex-China SAE1006 HRC offers have been maintained at $605/mt CFR, against $605-610/mt CFR last week, Vietnamese buyers’ bids have been voiced at below $600/mt CFR.
