As of November 1, China’s national price of HRB400E 20mm dia rebar, a weathervane of the domestic spot steel-market dynamics, had lost ground for the 16th consecutive working day to refresh a two-year low of Yuan 3,875/tonne ($532/t) including the 13% VAT, or down by a hefty Yuan 326/t in total from that on October 10, according to Mysteel’s assessment.
The continuing decline in rebar prices reflected the overall pessimism that has been prevailing in the steel market, largely due to the weaker expectation of steel demand with the approach of off-season for steel consumption, coupled with recent COVID-19 outbreaks in many cities across the country, a Shanghai-based market watcher told Mysteel Global.
Moreover, prices of key steelmaking raw materials were unable to lend any support to finished steel prices either – Mysteel SEADEX 62% Australian Fines for example, had declined by $18.95/dmt from October 10 to $79.95/dmt CFR Qingdao as of November 1.
“In the near term, China’s steel market may still be in a weak supply-demand balance, and the possibility of further price decline remains,” he warned.
Written by Rong Zhang, zhangronga@mysteel.com
This article has been published under an article exchange agreement between Mysteel Global and SteelMint.
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