WEEKLY: Tangshan billet prices rangebound

The Q235 150mm square billet price in Tangshan in North China's Hebei province was rangebound last week, being assessed by Mysteel at Yuan 3,460/tonne ($477/t) EXW and including the 13% VAT as of April 28, lower by just Yuan 10/t on week. During the week, local re-rollers acted cautiously towards procurement of the semis as their sales of finished steel slowed and losses continued, according to the weekly survey.

During the survey period, the capacity utilization rate of Tangshan's re-rollers declined and their demand for billet weakened slightly, a survey respondent said. Over April 18-24, daily billet consumption among the 48 re-rollers in Tangshan under Mysteel's tracking slipped by 1,000 tonnes/day on week to average 44,200 t/d. Meanwhile, the cautious