Average offer prices for ex-China and ex-ASEAN wire rod have remained stable over the past week as the market has been quiet ahead of the long holiday. Market sources are not sure about the price trend after the holiday since, despite the traditional restocking rebound in China, there are doubts in general over any bullishness in Asia.
Offers for ex-China wire rod from second-tier mills have been heard at $540-560/mt FOB, moving sideways on average due to the quiet market ahead of the Chinese New Year Holiday (February 9-16).
“The wire rod market has been extremely quiet as tomorrow is the eve of the Chinese New Year holiday, while market players are absent from the market and so prices of wire rod will unlikely see any changes until the resumption of work following the long holiday,” an international trader said.
Offer prices of Indonesia-based Dexin Steel’s wire rod have been heard at $560/mt FOB, while offer prices of ex-Malaysia wire rod have remained at $550/mt FOB, and Vietnam’s Hoa Phat has left the market at $570-580/mt FOB. Demand for wire rod has been very slack due to the approach of the Chinese New Year holiday in the Southeast Asian market. The tradable level for Q235 wire rod in the Philippines has still been assessed at $540-550/mt CFR, while traders see the workable levels at $555-560/mt CFR.
As of Thursday, February 8, rebar futures at the Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 3,854/mt ($543/mt), decreasing by RMB 14/mt ($2/mt) or down 0.36 percent since February 1, while increasing by 0.71 percent compared to the previous trading day (February 7).
$1 = RMB 7.1063