Local billet prices in China have improved just minimally over the past week and demand is still not high, which has left billet imports at a standstill. At the same time, offers for imported billet have dried up, as suppliers have either been targeting higher levels, too far from Chinese bids, or do not have much allocation for now.
The SteelOrbis reference price for imported billet in China is at $475/mt CFR this week, stable from last week, though overall imports remain halted since the tradable level is still far below $500/mt CFR.
The average local billet price in China has been at RMB 3,783/mt ex-warehouse, up by RMB 40/mt over the past week. This level translates to $473/mt, excluding 13 percent VAT, and, due to the depreciation of the local currency, the dollar-based price has lost $4/mt.
In such conditions, most major exporters, Iran and Russia, have not been active in offering billets to China. Nominal offers from Russia have been at $540-550/mt CFR China, being entirely uncompetitive in the country and also too high for customers outside of China. Offers for ex-Iran billets have been limited with traders’ most recent price idea at $505/mt CFR.
Prices in Southeast Asia have had a lack of direction, but there have been no strong signs of rebound, at least so far. Moreover, lower-priced IF prices have emerged again: offer levels for ex-ASEAN IF billet have been reported at $530/mt CFR Manila, while some unconfirmed deals at $525/mt CFR have been heard. This is down from the previous sales of IF billets two weeks ago at $540/mt CFR. The reference price for EAF/BOF in the Philippines import billet market is still at $540-548/mt CFR, like last week, and more offers are expected before a clearer picture is seen.
$1 = RMB 7.0722