A fresh deal for imported billet from Vietnam has been reported done to China today at a price level just slightly below the previous contract for Indonesian billet to the country, signalling a general stabilization of prices.
20,000 mt of Vietnamese BF billet from the major mill has been sold to China at $440/mt FOB or around $450/mt CFR, while the previous deal from Indonesia has been done at $451-452/mt CFR. A further import billet price increase in China is impossible as local prices have been fluctuating in a limited range
The local billet price in Tangshan has increased by RMB 10/mt today to RMB 3,410/mt ex-works. This is equivalent to $448/mt at the current exchange rate, excluding 13 percent VAT. The price has been fluctuating in the narrow range of RMB 3,390-3,420/mt ex-works over the past week.
Prices for non-Southeast Asian billet have remained too high for Chinese customers. Most offers have been at $450/mt CFR, but bids have been not above $440/mt CFR. As a result, suppliers have been targeting the Southeast Asian market instead.