WEEKLY: Tangshan billet prices retreat on week

Billet prices in Tangshan in North China's Hebei province eased slightly on week during July 20-26, with Mysteel assessing the price of Q235 150mm square billet in the city at Yuan 2,960/tonne ($437/t) EXW and including the 13% VAT on July 26, down by Yuan 30/t on week.

The dip in billet prices and rising production costs led Tangshan steelmakers to undertake more maintenance stoppages throughout the week. This led to a sharp decrease in billet supply over July 17-23, with the tonnage of the semis sold or exported by the 21 steelmakers in Tangshan and the surrounding areas under Mysteel's tracking plunging by 26% or 10,200 tonnes/day