Asian rebar prices were steady Dec. 21 with a new booking in Singapore. The China import billet price decreased on weak demand even as offers stayed unchanged.
A trader booked a second Vietnamese rebar shipment to Singapore Dec. 16 to close buyers’ futures contracts. The price was likely higher than $700/mt CFR Singapore theoretical weight for January shipment, according to two market sources.
A total volume of 55,000 mt Vietnamese rebar was booked to Singapore after the Vietnamese mill secured all the certificates, according to S&P Global Platts observations.
Some Singapore fabricators were looking for February to March shipment rebar.
In China, the most actively traded rebar contract for May 2022 on the Shanghai Futures Exchange closed at Yuan 4,473/mt ($702/mt) Dec. 21, down Yuan 2/mt from the previous session.
The Beijing spot price for 18-25 mm diameter HRB400 rebar was assessed at Yuan 4,820/mt ($756/mt) ex-stock actual weight, including 13% value added tax, down Yuan 5/mt from the previous session.
Construction steel inventory level in Beijing area was heard at 260,000 mt, down 9,600 mt from Dec. 21, said a Beijing-based trader.
Platts assessed 16-20 mm diameter BS500 rebar at $721/mt FOB China actual weight Dec. 21, unchanged from the previous session, and 16-32 mm diameter BS4449 Grade 500 rebar at $709/mt CFR Southeast Asia, unchanged over the same period.
--- Steel Business Briefing
