China's steel section market softened in the first half of the past week, though it rebounded slightly in the second half of the week. Impacted by mills' ex-works price adjustments, steel section prices have dropped a little in most regions in China on week-on-week basis; meanwhile, end-users are waiting for a clearer situation and traders' shipments are not so good. The slight increase in prices towards the end of the week was due to a small recovery in demand. However, with the May Day holiday approaching, it is expected that steel section prices in China will maintain an overall downward movement in the coming week.
Product name |
Specification |
Category |
Average price (RMB/mt) |
Weekly change (RMB/mt) |
Price ($/mt) |
Weekly change ($/mt) |
Angle |
50 mm x 50 mm x 5 m |
Q235 |
4,644 |
-32 |
744 |
-5 |
Channel |
160 mm x 65 mm x 8.5 m |
Q235 |
4,750 |
-42 |
727 |
-3 |
I-beam |
250 mm x 118 mm x 10 m |
Q235 |
4,816 |
-4 |
738 |
-1 |
In the Shanghai market, the price of 50 mm x 50 mm x 5 m steel angles is now at RMB 4,780/mt ($732/mt). The same product is sold at RMB 4,700/mt ($720/mt) in the Tangshan market and at RMB 4,860/mt ($744/mt) in the Guangzhou market. Meanwhile, prices of 160 mm x 65 mm x 8.5 mm steel channels stand at RMB 4,780/mt ($732/mt) in the Shanghai market, at RMB 4,760/mt ($729/mt) in Tangshan and at RMB 4,850/mt ($743/mt) in the Guangzhou market. In the Shanghai, Tangshan and Guangzhou markets, 250 mm x 118 mm x 10 m I-beam prices stand respectively at RMB 4,830/mt ($740/mt), RMB 4,900/mt ($750/mt) and RMB 4,850/mt ($743/mt). The prices are all ex-mill, including 17 percent VAT.
As for billet, in the past week prices in the Tangshan market initially rose but then declined. The current price of Q235 150 x 150 mm square billet is at RMB 4,420/mt ($676/mt), the price of 165 x 225 mm rectangular billet stands at RMB 4,450/mt ($681/mt), while the price of 20MnSi billet is at RMB 4,540/mt ($695/mt). All the above prices are ex-works, with 17 percent VAT included.
During the past week, prices of I-beam, angles and channels have dropped by RMB 20/mt ($3/mt) in eastern China, and market transactions in this region are quiet. Meanwhile, prices of large and medium-sized sections in southern China are generally stable, though the market transactions volume is down greatly compared with the previous week. Considering the rapid changes in market conditions, local traders in the southern region are cautious, and so their purchases are mainly aimed at replenishing their inventories. Traders in northern China report weak shipment volumes. Generally, most traders in China indicate that steel section prices lack the momentum to move up in the short term.