Over the past week China's longs market declined slightly in eastern and southern China, while prices in northern China rose up before then posting a decline. Affected by adverse weather conditions, transaction volumes in most regions were generally weak.
Product name |
Specification |
Category |
Average price (RMB/mt) |
Price ($/mt) |
Weekly change ($/mt) |
6.5 mm |
Q235 |
4,570 |
670 |
-6 |
|
20 mm |
HRB 335 |
4,497 |
659 |
-5 |
|
20 mm |
HRB 400 |
4,700 |
689 |
+5 |
By the end of trading on April 26, in China's three main steel markets, i.e., Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou, the prices of Q235 grade 6.5 mm high speed wire rod respectively stood at RMB 4,420/mt ($648/mt), RMB 4,620/mt ($677/mt) and RMB 4,670/mt ($685/mt), with HRB 335 grade 20 mm rebar prices respectively at RMB 4,230/mt ($620/mt), RMB 4,760/mt ($698/mt) and RMB 4,500/mt ($660/mt). Meanwhile, HRB 400 grade 20 mm rebar is priced at RMB 4,450/mt ($652/mt), RMB 4,850/mt ($711/mt) and RMB 4,800/mt ($704/mt) in these respective markets. All prices include 17 percent VAT.
During the past week, only the prices in northern China rose to some extent compared with the previous week, due to the price adjustments of the steel mills in the north. Meanwhile, longs prices in all other Chinese regions declined, as traders cut their prices due to their reduced optimism as regards the market's future prospects. In northern China, the market entered a downward trend towards the end of the past week, under the influence of the other regional markets in China. The price trend in the north has now become relatively stable, but is expected to follow a slightly decreasing trend in the coming period.
As regards the longs markets in eastern and southern China, on April 21 Jiangsu Province-based steelmaker Shagang Group announced its price policy for late April, with a hike of RMB 50/mt ($7/mt) for its high speed wire rod and rebar, which reached RMB 4,700 /mt ($689/mt) and RMB 4,600/mt ($674/mt) respectively. While the ex-factory prices increased, domestic market activities did not improve. Currently, market demand has declined significantly, with traders, now more cautious, seeking to convert their goods into cash. As a result, prices have dropped in the markets. At the same time, because of the continuing high levels of ex-factory prices, traders are not willing to reduce their prices by significant margins, and so the drop in market prices in the past week has been slight.