Asian hot-rolled coil prices were largely unchanged on Jan. 20, as overseas buyers were unfazed by mills’ attempts to hike offers.
Platts assessed SS400 HRC of 3 mm thickness at $461/mt FOB China Jan. 20, up $1/mt day over day. The same grade was assessed at $478/mt CFR Southeast Asia, unchanged over the same period.
Export offers were heard from $470/mt FOB Jingtang and above, up $3/mt from the most competitive offer heard earlier in the day.
A mainstream mill raised its offer by $15/mt week over week to $485/mt FOB Bayuquan, while its seller’s tradable level increased by $5/mt over the same period to $465/mt FOB.
“We want to stabilize the prices first and test out the market with a hike,” said the northern mainstream mill source, though acknowledging the price would be hard to achieve for now. Tradable levels for private mills were heard at above $460/mt FOB China.
Market participants said offer prices were more resilient despite a decline in raw material prices, as mills appeared to push prices higher in an effort to improve margins.
Concurrently, the Chinese yuan is strengthening against the US dollar, which could be another factor supporting the US dollar denominated offer levels.
The most actively traded May HRC contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange closed at Yuan 3,276/mt on Jan. 20, down Yuan 23/mt or 0.7% day over day.
Platts assessed the spot price of Q235B 5.75 mm HRC at Yuan 3,280/mt ($471/mt) ex-stock Shanghai on Jan. 20, including value added tax, down Yuan 30/mt day over day.
In Southeast Asia, Chinese regular-width Q235 grade coils were offered at $482-$485/mt CFR Vietnam.
Offers for Indian SS400 and SAE1006 grade comprising 30% 2 mm-thick coils were reported at $485-$490/mt CFR Vietnam.
Some Indian-origin SAE1006 position cargo offers were heard at $479/mt CFR Vietnam, with a Vietnam-based trader noting that the cargoes had already arrived at Vietnam ports.
An Indonesian mill was heard offering 3 mm-thick coils at $485-$490/mt FOB, or around $500-$505/mt CFR Vietnam.
Japanese offers were heard hovering at $505/mt CFR Vietnam. “Japanese mills were wary of potential antidumping duties, and hence insisted on offering at similar prices as local mills,” said a Japan-based mill source.
Platts assessed SAE1006 HRC at $472/mt FOB China on Jan. 20, up $1/mt from the day before. The same grade of coil was unchanged over the same period at $482/mt CFR Southeast Asia.
