Vietnam: Formosa Ha Tinh raises HRC offers for Apr’25 sales

• Anti-dumping duty on Chinese imports spikes prices
• Domestic competitor’s price hike influences FHS move

Vietnamese steel giant Formosa Ha Tinh (FHS) has increased its hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices by approximately $25-29/t m-o-m for April 2025 sales. Following this adjustment, FHS’s HRC prices (SAE1006, skin-passed) hovered at $523-535/t CIF Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) depending on the quantity booked, as compared to $500/t CIF HCMC a month ago. The company hiked prices owing to anti-dumping duties imposed on China along with substantial increases in the tags of its domestic competitor.

Key factors influencing prices

1. Competitive HRC offers: Vietnam’s steel major, the Hoa Phat Group, raised its April 2025 sales prices of HRCs by $11/t to $517/t, excluding VAT, for the southern region. Meanwhile, China’s Baosteel has kept its April HRC prices stable after a $14/t increase in March. Hot-dip galvanised prices also remained unchanged due to weak domestic demand and trade restrictions on Chinese steel.

2. Vietnam imposes anti-dumping duties on Chinese HRCs: Vietnam has imposed anti-dumping duties (19.38%-27.83%) on Chinese hot-rolled coil (HRC) imports to protect its domestic steel industry, while Indian imports remain exempt. The move follows a July 2024 investigation into unfair pricing. With steel imports rising 38% y-o-y in 2024, China accounted for the largest share (12.49 million tonnes).

3. Chinese SHFE shows downtrend: China’s Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) HRC futures declined by RMB 53/t ($7/t) w-o-w to RMB 3,342/t ($462/t) from RMB 3,395/t ($469/t) a week ago. Moreover, on a d-o-d basis, the same dropped by RMB 19/t ($3/t) as compared to RMB 3,361/t ($464/t) a day ago.

Outlook
Formosa Ha Tinh’s increased HRC offers for April, driven by anti-dumping duties on Chinese imports and rising prices of its domestic competitor, signal a firming Vietnamese HRC market. With reduced Chinese supply and Hoa Phat’s price hike, upward pressure on HRC prices is expected. However, demand stability will be crucial in determining the extent of further price increases.