Vietnamese producer Hoa Phat Group announced its new local prices for HRC for shipment in February on December 1, hiking them officially by $35/mt month on month, though the tradable price for large orders has gained $25/mt over the period under review. The new prices of the company reflect positive sentiments in terms of the price trend among market players given the recent hikes in import HRC prices. However, the future trend still lacks clarity, as, although Chinese sellers have increased their offers to Vietnam, the drop in HRC futures prices in China this week has been affecting sentiments.
The new prices for Hoa Phat Group for non-skin passed SAE1006 and SS400 HRC for February shipment have settled at VND 14,650-14,680/kg ($603-605/mt) CIF, where the lower level corresponds to the price in the north, with the highest level in the south. However, the price for large orders has settled at around $595/mt CIF, according to sources.
Although higher ex-China HRC import offers for Vietnamese buyers have played a role in setting Hoa Phat’s new prices, most Vietnamese buyers still believe the new levels are too high. Besides, there is a big gap between Chinese mills’ offers and traders’ offers. Specifically, while offers for ex-China SAE1006 HRC from mills have been heard at $590-600/mt CFR, tradable prices from traders have been reported at around $575-580/mt CFR this week. Besides, ex-China SS400 HRC offers have been mainly coming at $560-565/mt CFR Vietnam.
“There is a gap not only between Hoa Phat’s offers and imports, but also between Chinese mills and traders and, given the drops in HRC futures prices in China this week, market insiders have been less positive in terms of the future uptrend, and have been postponing new purchases or asking for discounts,” a Vietnamese trader told SteelOrbis.
