Asian customers have been willing to buy imported rebar only in the event of some discounts being offered. As a result, there has been a booking of ex-CIS rebar, while Turkish and Chinese prices have moved sideways and have been less competitive.
A sale of about 50,000 mt of ex-Ukraine rebar has been heard at $425/mt CFR Singapore on theoretical weight basis. Meanwhile, end-users in Singapore said they are willing to accept $425-430/mt CFR Singapore in future deals, which is much lower than Chinese or Turkish offer prices.
Turkish producers cannot offer below $445/mt CFR Singapore, but even this level is not very attractive for suppliers, taking into account growing scrap costs.
SteelOrbis has been informed that ex-China HRB400 grade 20 mm rebar export prices from mills are standing at $460-470/mt FOB as of today, Friday, November 29, remaining stable compared to November 22.
During the given week, rebar inventory levels in the local market in China have decreased further, though not so significantly compared to previous weeks. At the same time, cautious sentiments gave started to be observed among players in the Chinese domestic rebar market, which will negatively affect Chinese rebar offer prices in the near future.
As of November 29, rebar futures at the Shanghai Future Exchange are standing at RMB 3,620/mt ($514.6/mt), decreasing by RMB 35/mt ($5/mt) since November 22. Average rebar spot prices in China have declined by RMB 13mt ($1.8/mt) week on week to RMB 4,290/mt ($610/mt) ex-warehouse, according to SteelOrbis’ information.