As of today, Monday, July 18, average Chinese domestic rebar and wire rod prices have moved down sharply week on week, and since Friday there have also been decreases, though futures prices have increased today. The outlook has remained bearish mainly due to weak demand, though after such a big drop price fluctuations may slow down, SteelOrbis has learned from the market on July 18.
The average rebar price has decreased by RMB 250/mt week on week, while the average wire rod price has lost RMB 277/mt. Rebar prices have decreased by RMB 16/mt since Friday, but the mood has improved slightly amid higher futures prices.
During the given week, rebar and wire rod prices moved down amid the decreasing rebar futures prices and the prevailing bearish sentiments among market players. The inventory levels of rebar and wire rod indicated decreases, which, however, has been connected mainly to the production cuts, while demand remained slack. Steelmakers’ loss will unlikely see changes in a short term, which may result in their unwillingness to produce, which may bolster rebar and wire rod prices from supply side in August. It is thought that rebar and wire rod prices will fluctuate within a limited range in the coming week, but with negative bias to remain.
On July 18, rebar futures contract (rb2210) offers closed at RMB 3,780/mt ($560/mt) at Shanghai Futures Exchange, down RMB 269/mt ($39.8/mt) or 6.64 percent compared to July 11. On the day, the closing price of rebar futures has added RMB 95/mt ($14/mt), signaling some improvements after the sharp fall late last week, though further developments are yet to be seen and the majority of market players are still pessimistic, saying that price stabilization is the best scenario.
Average domestic rebar and wire rod prices in China's main markets are presented in the tables below.
Rebar prices in local markets
|
Spec. (mm) - Category |
City |
Price (RMB/mt) |
Price |
Weekly change |
Weekly change |
|
25 - HRB400 |
Beijing |
3,800 |
563.4 |
-250 |
-41.5 |
|
Guangzhou |
4,170 |
618.2 |
-240 |
-40.4 |
|
|
Shanghai |
3,810 |
564.9 |
-260 |
-43.0 |
|
|
Average price |
3,926.7 |
582.2 |
-250 |
-41.6 |
All prices include 13 percent VAT and all prices are ex-warehouse.
Wire rod prices in local markets
|
Spec. (mm) - Category |
City |
Price (RMB/mt) |
Price ($/mt) |
Weekly change (RMB/mt) |
Weekly change |
|
6.5 - HPB300 |
Beijing |
4,540 |
673.1 |
-330 |
-54.2 |
|
Guangzhou |
4,500 |
667.2 |
-230 |
-39.2 |
|
|
Shanghai |
4,630 |
686.4 |
-270 |
-45.3 |
|
|
Average price |
4,556.7 |
675.6 |
-277 |
-46.3 |
|
|
8 - HPB300 |
Beijing |
4,320 |
640.5 |
-330 |
-54.0 |
|
Guangzhou |
4,440 |
658.3 |
-230 |
-39.2 |
|
|
Shanghai |
4,330 |
642.0 |
-270 |
-45.0 |
|
|
Average price |
4,363.3 |
646.9 |
-277 |
-46.1 |
All prices include 13 percent VAT and all prices are ex-warehouse.
$1 = RMB 6.7447