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Total stocks of finished steel held by Chinese traders declined at a slower pace over November 20-26 as many regions in China were hit by suddenly plummeting temperatures, heavy rains and snowfalls, causing a parallel freezing of demand, Mysteel Global has learned.
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Chinese steel mills raised their steel export offers last week and again this week, even though domestic steel prices have started showing signs of weakening and when global demand is not so strong, Mysteel Global has learned.
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The price of Q235 150mm square billet in Tangshan, the bellwether of China’s steel market, came off its 15-month high on Monday, declining by Yuan 30/tonne ($4.6/t) from last Friday to settle at Yuan 3,590/t EXW and including the 13% VAT, according to Mysteel’s assessment, after the price had gained a total of Yuan 50/t during last week. Currently, both upward and downward forces are playing on the price of the semi, market watchers say.
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China’s prices of rebar and hot-rolled coil (HRC) in physical market had been strengthening since the end of October, though the demand in some regions especially Northeast China softened amid the freezing weather, Mysteel Global noted.
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Inventories of the five major carbon-steel items held by Chinese traders checked by Mysteel declined for the sixth week over November 13-19, thinning by another 1.1 million tonnes on week, new survey results show. However, the pace at which the stocks are falling slowed down from the 1.3 million tonnes drop in the prior period, as the heavy rain, snow and plunging temperatures in some regions of China have moderately dampened demand.
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China’s steel mills have hiked their export offering prices substantially by $5-19/tonne on week more to match the gains in the domestic prices than to eagerly look for buyers from overseas, though demand from overseas have appeared robust, Mysteel Global understands from industry sources.
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The price of Q235 150mm square billet in North China’s Tangshan, the bellwether of China’s steel market movement, refreshed its 15-month high last week, climbing by another Yuan 70/tonne ($10.6/t) on week to reach Yuan 3,580/t EXW and including the 13% VAT as of November 13, according to Mysteel’s assessment. But downward pressure is building as frequently imposed production bans on steel re-rollers have dulled their appetite for billets.
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China’s domestic steel prices improved further in general over the November 9-13 on the climbs of steel futures prices and the robust spot sales in the first half of last week, though the volume eased moderately on higher prices, Mysteel Global noted.
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The profit margins of China’s blast-furnace steel mills saw some improvement in October, mainly thanks to the recovery in steel prices with the firmer demand from end-users, Mysteel’s latest monthly report shows. The mills’ production costs did increase further last month, however.
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The Q235 150mm square billet price in Tangshan, North China’s Hebei province, continued to strengthen last week, rising by another Yuan 60/t ($9.1/t) on week and hitting a 15-month high of Yuan 3,510/t EXW and including the 13% VAT last Friday. The semis price, regarded as representative of the health of China’s steel market, subsequently refreshed new highs over the weekend and on Monday, Mysteel Global notes.
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China’s domestic steel prices picked up the speed in strengthening over November 2-6, mainly on the further rise in demand and better market sentiment as well as the remaining high raw material prices, Mysteel Global noted.
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Chinese steel export prices moved up by $2-3/t last week, after remaining stable for one week in the prior week, according to Mysteel’s latest weekly report. But while prices of China-origin steel are becoming more competitive in the global steel trading market, overseas buyers continue to view the renewed vigour of the COVID-19 pandemic with concern.
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The Q235 150mm square billet price in Tangshan, North China’s Hebei province, moved up for the fourth week in a row, gaining another Yuan 10/tonne ($1.5/t) on week to Yuan 3,450/t EXW and including the 13% VAT as of October 30, which was phenomenal to some degree as local billet consumption had reduced evidently with the latest suspension on local re-rollers since October 23.
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China’s domestic steel prices strengthened further over the last week of October, mainly on the support of the steady declines in steel stocks after the National Day holiday, which offset the negative sentiment from higher production, Mysteel Global noted.
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Stocks of the five major carbon steel products across China tracked by Mysteel declined for the third week at a steady pace over October 23-29 as the actual demand remained firm. But some in the market are worried about demand and prices in the coming November, Mysteel Global noted.
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The recent appreciation of the Yuan against US dollar has been causing headaches for Chinese steel exporters while prompting some Chinese mills and traders to do some importing, especially of steel semis from the ASEAN region, Mysteel’s latest weekly report shows.
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Tangshan Q235 150mm square billet price, a key indicator of China’s steel market sentiment, increased for the third week in a row over October 17-23, up Yuan 40/tonne ($6/t) on week to a 1.5 month-high of Yuan 3,440/t EXW and including the 13% VAT by October 23 as billet had been comparatively with undersupply and stocks at both the traders and re-rollers fell further, local market sources explained.
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China’s domestic steel prices strengthened slightly over October 19-23 on the steady declines in finished steel stocks, though the prices were still under pressure of uncertainties on demand sustainability and at the same time raw materials prices ebbed on week last week, Mysteel Global noted.
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Stocks of the five major carbon steel items held by Chinese steel traders under Mysteel’s weekly survey have declined for two successive weeks, slipping by some 5% over October 16-22, thanks to sustained buying over the period. But market concerns remain about the strength of the demand recovery.
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China’s steel export sales continued increasing for a second week over October 10-16 mainly because shippers were responding to the appreciation of Yuan against the US dollar. But Chinese steel suppliers still showed little willingness to export while they focussed on domestic sales, with the result that steel export contracts concluded last week were limited, according to Mysteel’s latest weekly report.
