Ex-China rebar offer prices have edged down in the past week due to weaker sentiments and weak demand, while ex-ASEAN rebar offers have followed.
Ex-China rebar offer prices have been heard at $470-480/mt FOB, for February shipment, decreasing by $5/mt on average compared to December 13.
During the given week, rebar prices in the Chinese domestic market have moved down amid decreasing rebar futures prices. As the end of the year is approaching, construction sites have stepped up construction activities, bolstering rebar prices to a certain degree. However, the Chinese New Year holiday is coming soon, which will exert a negative impact on the demand for rebar as workers will gradually start to return to their home regions from early January. It is thought that rebar prices in the Chinese domestic market will likely continue their downtrend in the coming week.
In the Singapore market, the offer prices of ex-Malaysia rebar have been heard at $490-495/mt DAP, theoretical weight, moving down by $10/mt over the past week, which translates to around $485/mt on CFR basis. Offer prices of ex-China rebar have been heard at $500-505/mt CFR, theoretical weight.
In the Hong Kong market, the tradable level has been assessed at $500/mt CFR, actual weight, moving down by $10/mt from last week.
However, demand for rebar in overseas market has not seen significant improvement yet, and so buyers have mostly held a wait-and-see stance towards current offer prices.
Average rebar spot prices in China have fallen by RMB 60/mt ($8.4/mt) compared to December 6, standing at RMB 3,420/mt ($476/mt) ex-warehouse, according to SteelOrbis’ information.
As of December 20, rebar futures at Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 3,279/mt ($456/mt), decreasing by RMB 81/mt ($11.3/mt) or 2.4 percent since December 13, while down 0.27 percent compared to the previous trading day, December 19.
$1 = RMB 7.1901