Sluggish demand in Chinese domestic semi-finished steel market

During the week ending July 26, Chinese domestic semi-finished steel prices have indicated various trends, with prices in Jiangsu indicating a rising trend and prices in Shanxi declining, though prices have remained stable in other regions, while transaction activity in the overall market has been at low levels. Average prices of steel billet and slab in the local Chinese market are presented in the table below.

During the given week, some steelmakers have increased their prices for semi-finished steel. Rainy weather in northern China and hot weather conditions along the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze river have negatively affected transaction activities in the domestic semi-finished steel market. Meanwhile, rolling mills are not optimistic on the future prospects for the finished steel market and so they have been unwilling to increase purchases of semi-finished steel. It is thought that semi-finished steel prices in the Chinese domestic market will likely indicate some slight downward fluctuations in the coming week.

The above prices include 17 percent VAT
 
$1 = RMB 6.68