Below is the brief near-term outlook of the five key steel products Mysteel shares on a weekly basis, drawing upon the results of related surveys and communication with market participants.
Rebar & wire rod: The price may head into choppy territory over August 10-14 after rising markedly in the prior week on the support of traders’ inventories after these had reversed down on week.
Hot-rolled coil: The prices for the coming week are seen softening in North China but stabilizing in the country’s south, where the volumes of southbound HRC shipments are not expected to increase until about two weeks later, defusing local oversupply concerns in the short run.
Cold-rolled coil: Market participants expect the price to inch up further over August 10-14, citing relatively low inventories held by traders and the sustained strength observed in prices of HRC, the crucial feed for CRC production.
Medium plate: The price may stay firm over August 10-14, as stocks of the low-priced plates imported previously are essentially sold out. As the fresh seaborne materials en route to China were booked at higher prices, these are unlikely to have a major impact on domestic pricing upon arrival at port.
Sections: Prices may hover at a high level over August 10-14, as traders may raise their selling prices next week to track both the rise in offering prices from steel mills and the continued strength seen in billet, the key feed for re-rollers of sections. The Q235 150mm square billet in Tangshan, for example, gained Yuan 50/tonne ($7.1/t) on week as of August 7 to reach Yuan 3,440/t EXW including the 13% VAT.
This article has been published under an article exchange agreement between Mysteel Global and SteelMint.
Photo: World Steel
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