As anticipated, Vietnamese producer Hoa Phat Group announced its new local prices for HRC for shipment in March and April on January 2, hiking them by around $37-38/mt month on month. However, although the new prices of the company have followed the market expectations amid higher import offers for HRC in Vietnam, for ex-China material in particular, many market insiders emphasized that the new levels are “too high so far to be accepted by the market” as the future trend still lacks clarity amid the slow trade during the winter holidays.
The new prices of Hoa Phat Group for non-skin passed SAE1006 and SS400 for March and April shipments have settled at VND 15,600-15,630/kg ($641-642/mt) CIF, where the lower end corresponds to the price in the northern and central Vietnam, with the highest level in the south.
Although higher ex-China HRC import offers for Vietnamese buyers have played a role in setting Hoa Phat’s new prices, some Vietnamese buyers still believe the new levels are too high as the gap between Chinese offers and Hoa Phat’s prices is above $40/mt depending on the specification. In particular, most ex-China SS400 HRC prices have been voiced at $580-585/mt CFR Vietnam, the same as last week, while the tradable level for ex-China SAE1006 HRC has been estimated at around $600/mt CFR for end-of-February shipment.
“Today, we have seen another recovery in Chinese HRC futures prices, though Chinese HRC suppliers in Vietnam are not in a hurry to go higher so far, as the market is simply not ready after the holiday lull, but when it wakes up we may actually see another hike,” a market insider told SteelOrbis.
As of January 2, HRC futures prices at the Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 4,146/mt ($586/mt), increasing by RMB 11/mt ($1.6/mt) or up by 0.27 percent since December 26, though increasing by 0.88 percent compared to the previous trading day (December 29).
