Chinese domestic steel section market move down

Chinese domestic steel section price have moved down during the past week.

In the Shanghai market, the price of 50 mm x 50 mm x 5 m steel angles is now at $681/mt (RMB 4,460/mt). The same product is sold at $653/mt (RMB 4,280/mt) in the Tangshan market and at $728/mt (RMB 4,770/mt) in the Guangzhou market. Meanwhile, prices of 160 mm x 65 mm x 8.5 mm steel channels stand at $672/mt (RMB 4,400/mt) in the Shanghai market, at $634/mt (RMB 4,150/mt) in Tangshan and at $744/mt (RMB 4,870/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 $653/mt (RMB 4,280/mt), $670/mt (RMB 4,390/mt) and $730/mt (RMB 4,780/mt). The prices are all ex-mill, including 17 percent VAT. Steel section prices in the Chinese domestic market can be viewed in the table below.

As for billet, prices of the semi-finished product in the Chinese domestic market have indicated a significant decrease during past week. In Tangshan, the current price of Q235 150 x 150 mm square billet is at RMB 3,670/mt ($560/mt), the price of 165 x 225 mm rectangular billet stands at RMB 3,690/mt ($563/mt), while the price of 20MnSi billet is at around RMB 3,790/mt ($579/mt). The prices are all ex-mill, including 17 percent VAT.

Domestic steel section prices in China price have decreased during the past week due to the influence of the downward movement of the upstream billet prices both in spot and future markets, though the decline seen in domestic steel section quotations have been relatively smaller compare to billet prices. Low inventory levels in the local Chinese steel section market have also provided a certain support to section prices. Overall trading activity in the Chinese domestic steel section market has remained weak, while most traders have held a negative view for the future trend of the market. As for the coming week, domestic steel section prices are expected to fluctuate on a slightly soft trend.

$1 = RMB 6.55