MONTHLY: China's HRC prices seen edging lower in November

Following their strong rebound at the end of October, China's hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices headed south again during the first week of November, casting a shadow over the future trend in flat steel prices. The supply-demand imbalance is likely to widen further this month, with HRC prices expected to continue sliding, Mysteel's latest monthly report on the flat steel indicates.

HRC output is seen declining mildly this month, reflecting the mismatch between supply and demand and the narrower profit margins steel mills can earn on hot coils, market sources noted. However, the integrated mills and coil re-rollers are not expected to make large cuts in their HRC output this month,