Asian rebar prices have been under pressure after May holidays due to weaker than expected performance of the Chinese market and further discounts provided by ASEAN mills, suffering from poor demand.
Ex-China rebar offer prices have been heard at $450-460/mt FOB, June shipment, moving sideways on average compared to April 25. During the given week, the average rebar prices in the Chinese domestic market have seen overall declines. The People’s Bank of China has decided to cut the reserve requirement ratio (RRR) for Chinese banks by 0.5 percentage points effective as of May 15 and to lower the interest rate for individual housing provident fund loans by 0.25 percentage points as of May 8, which, however, failed to bolster market sentiments much. The prevailing bearish sentiments due to the slack demand from downstream users exerted a negative impact on rebar prices. At the same time, the decreasing rebar futures prices also negatively affected the rebar prices in the spot market. It is thought that rebar prices in the Chinese domestic market will likely see slight decreases in the coming week amid the uncertainties in the market.
In Singapore market, the offer prices of ex-Malaysia rebar have been heard at $470/mt DAP, theoretical weight, down $10-15/mt compared to the prices ahead of the Labor Day holiday. This translates to $460-465/mt CFR. Offers for ex-China rebar stood at $470/mt CFR, theoretical weight, while actual deal prices could be lower with buyers targeting $455/mt CFR.
In Hong Kong market, buyers’ counter-offer target price stood at $450-455/mt CFR, actual weight, remaining stable compared to April 25, while offers are at $470/mt CFR.
Average rebar spot prices in China have lost RMB 23/mt ($2.4/mt) compared to April 25, standing at RMB 3,233/mt ($449/mt) ex-warehouse, according to SteelOrbis’ information.
As of May 9, rebar futures at Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 3,022/mt ($420/mt), decreasing by RMB 79/mt ($3.5/mt) or 2.55 percent since April 25, while down 1.63 percent compared to the previous trading day, May 8.
$1 = RMB 7.2095