Below is the brief near-term outlook for the five key steel products Mysteel shares on a weekly basis, drawing upon the results of related surveys and communication with Chinese market participants.
Rebar & wire rod: The prices of these longs may strengthen over October 10-14, as most construction sites across the country will stock up some tonnage ahead of the convening of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in Beijing from October 16.
Besides, the decline in rebar output may also lend some support to the prices. Rebar output at 137 steel producers across China under Mysteel’s tracking declined by 15,100 tonnes on week to 3.01 million tonnes as of October 5.
Hot-rolled coil: This price may slip in the week ending October 14, as most end-users have shown little interest in buying with rather sufficient stocks at hand. Moreover, the accumulation of stocks will continue to weigh on the prices.
Cold-rolled coil: The price may be narrowly range-bound this week, as some traders have firmed their offering prices on better sentiment, while some end-users will replenish their stocks. Meanwhile, CRC output has been hovering at a relatively high level – production among 29 steelmakers nationwide under Mysteel’s tracking edged up by 900 tonnes on week to 788,300 tonnes as of October 5.
Medium plate: The price is likely to fluctuate over October 10-14, as high stocks at commercial warehouses have been dampening the prices. As of October 6, plate stocks at 217 warehouses in 65 Chinese cities under Mysteel’s tracking increased by 3.8% on week to 2.1 million tonnes.
Sections: Prices are expected to soften this week, as most re-rollers will trim their production on meagre profits they could currently earn, though the Q235 150mm square billet price in North China’s Tangshan under Mysteel’s assessment edged up by Yuan 30/tonne ($4.2/t) from September 30 to Yuan 3,710/t EXW and including the 13% VAT as of October 9.
Written by Villanelle Xia, xiayi@mysteel.com
Note – This article has been written in accordance with article exchange agreement between Mysteel Global and SteelMint.
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