Chinese domestic steel section prices resume their soft trend

Chinese domestic steel section prices moved up in the first part of the past week, but then resumed their previous soft trend.

In the Shanghai market, the price of 50 mm x 50 mm x 5 m steel angles is now at $627/mt (RMB 4,330/mt). The same product is sold at $547/mt (RMB 3,780/mt) in the Tangshan market and at $637/mt (RMB 4,400/mt) in the Guangzhou market. Meanwhile, prices of 160 mm x 65 mm x 8.5 mm steel channels stand at $602/mt (RMB 4,160/mt) in the Shanghai market, at $535/mt (RMB 3,700/mt) in Tangshan and at $661/mt (RMB 4,570/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 $590/mt (RMB 4,080/mt), $544/mt (RMB 3,760/mt) and $653/mt (RMB 4,510/mt). The prices are all ex-mill, including 16 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 steel product in the Chinese domestic market have softened slightly on week-on-week basis. In Tangshan, the current price of Q235 150 x 150 mm square billet is at RMB 3,320/mt ($480/mt), the price of 165 x 225 mm rectangular billet stands at RMB 3,340/mt ($483/mt), while the price of 20MnSi billet is at around RMB 3,420/mt ($495/mt). The prices are all ex-mill, including 16 percent VAT.

Trading activity has remained at low levels in the local Chinese section steel market, causing prices to resume their downward movement as of the middle of the past week, replacing the upward trend which had resulted from the positive outcome of the US-China talks in Buenos. As for the week ahead, considering the ongoing slackening of demand due to the cold and snowy weather conditions, it is thought that domestic steel section prices may fluctuate on a slightly soft trend.

$1 = RMB 6.91