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Mysteel’s Tangshan Q235 150mm square billet benchmark price, a barometer of China’s steel market, fell further by Yuan 20/tonne ($2.8/t) from last Friday to a two-month low of Yuan 3,420/t EXW and including 13% VAT as of August 18.
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Despite low demand, stocks of the five major finished steel items at both traders and mills across China have finally declined after rising steadily for five successive weeks, Mysteel Global has learned. Sources attributed the dip to declining production from both electric arc furnace (EAF) mills and blast furnace mills, rather than any uptick in demand. The five steel items comprise rebar, wire rod, hot-rolled coil, cold-rolled coil and medium plate.
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China’s national average price for HRB400 20mm dia rebar reversed down on August 15 after a two-day rebound, dipping by Yuan 6/tonne ($0.9/t) on day to Yuan 3,842/t including the 13% VAT even though the steel inventories at the traders showed signs of decreases.
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Angang Steel Co (Angang), the listed arm of Anshan Iron & Steel Group, the largest steel mill in Northeast China’s Liaoning province, is rolling over its list prices for flat steel including hot-rolled coil for September sales, Mysteel Global learned from the company. For August sales, Angang had lifted its prices by Yuan 100-200/tonne ($14-28/t), as reported.
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China’s national economy had been steadily progressing up to July despite small wavering in some aspects last month, Liu Aihua, spokesperson of the National Bureau of Statistics, reassured the media at the press conference on August 14.
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China’s national average benchmark price for HRB 400 20mm dia rebar, tracked daily by Mysteel, continued with the recovery for the second day on August 14, up another Yuan 14/tonne ($2/t) on day to Yuan 3,848/t including 13% VAT, mainly on the anticipation of supply ease with the large-scale maintenance initiated by the Chinese steelmakers recently.
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China’s sales of excavators and other heavy machinery over January-July increased by 13.9% on year to 149,553 units, according to an August 13 release by the China Construction Machinery Association (CCMA), with July sales alone being higher by 11% on year at 12,346 units.
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China’s national average price of HRB400 20mm dia rebar finally recovered from its 16-month low on August 13 after having declined for the previous eight days, up Yuan 14/tonne ($2/t) on day to Yuan 3,834/t including the 13% VAT, as many domestic steel producers announced long steel output cuts.
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China’s hot-rolled coil producers are enjoying improved profits of late, despite the decline in market prices of hot coils and waning actual demand, mainly thanks to the significant decrease in iron ore prices that has substantially reduced mills’ costs.
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Both sales and production of China’s new-energy vehicles (NEV) declined on year for the first time in July, down 4.7% and 6.9% respectively, after a boost in sales in June as buyers rushed to enjoy the last days of subsidies on such vehicles until June 25, according to the latest release from China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) on August 12.
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China’s steel trading, especially that in East and South China, rebounded substantially on Monday when China’s domestic long steel prices continued to decline and the super typhoon Lekima, after thrashing the regions over the weekend, moved northward.
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Baoshan Iron & Steel (Baoshan Steel), the listed-arm of China Baowu Steel Group, is lifting its list prices for carbon steel hot-rolled coils for September sales by Yuan 50/tonne ($7.1/t), according to the company’s latest release via its official We-chat site, posted late on August 9.
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Mysteel’s national average price for HRB400 20mm dia rebar benchmark declined Yuan 48/tonne ($6.8/t) on day to Yuan 3,864/t including the 13% VAT as of August 9, a new low since April 2018. At the same time, Mysteel’s price for Q235 150mm square billet in Tangshan, another key indicator of China’s steel market, moved down Yuan 40/t over August 9-11 to Yuan 3,460/t EXW and including the 13% VAT as of Sunday.
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The most traded October rebar contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange dropped by a large Yuan 214/tonne ($30.4/t) over August 5-9 to close the daytime session on August 9 at Yuan 3,591/t – also down Yuan 123/t from the settlement price on Thursday – mainly due to worsening sentiments caused by the continuing climb in rebar stocks and weak fundamentals, Mysteel Global noted.
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China’s national average benchmark price for HRB 400 20mm dia rebar continued its downward slide for a sixth straight day Thursday, losing another Yuan 7/tonne ($1/t) on day to Yuan 3,912/t including 13% VAT as of August 8, according to Mysteel’s daily price tracker.
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Auto sheet posted the stiffest decline of 19.6% on year among the ten major flat steel products by the steelworks members of the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA), the association disclosed in its latest detailed breakdowns by utilization including shipbuilding, electrical home appliance manufacturing, bridge construction and container building.
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The Tangshan Q235 150mm square billet price, a crucial indicator of China’s steel market sentiment especially in North China, managed to regain Yuan 20/tonne ($2.8/t) on day to Yuan 3,560/t EXW and including the 13% VAT as of August 7, but the overall steel market sentiment stayed pessimistic with rebar price down further.
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As of August 6, China’s national HRB400 20mm dia rebar benchmark price fell by another Yuan 28/tonne ($4/t) on day to Yuan 3,935/t and the Tangshan Q235 150mm square billet price down Yuan 20/t on day to Yuan 3,540/t EXW, both prices, including the 13% VAT, had been the fourth-day decline when the market sentiment stayed pessimistic.
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China’s steel prices stayed on the downtrend on August 5 as demand showed no signs of revival and weather remained uncooperative, while production stayed high despite that some electric-arc-furnace mills reduced output amid lossmaking.
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Hot-rolled coil traders in China struggled more than their steelmaker suppliers last week though both continued to be impacted by the continuing slide in actual demand for HRC, Mysteel Global has learned. China’s national average benchmark price for Q235 3mm HRC declined by Yuan 33/tonne ($4.7/t) on week to Yuan 3,916/t including the 13% VAT as of August 2.
