Posted on 22 Jan 2021
Long steel products markets in Southeast Asia have weakened, Kallanish notes. Lower-priced offers from certain traders have dented market sentiment and regional buyers are slow to place new orders. There is talk that Chinese mills may divert more steel to export markets soon because of the approaching Spring Festival holiday.
Prices for wire rod from Tangshan are prevailing at around $610/tonne cfr Manila, down from $615-620/t cfr last week. Some deals have taken place at as low as $605/t cfr. These transactions are believed to be from short-selling traders, as this level is far below that available from mills.
Wire rod from the high-tier Chinese mills is offered at $640-650/t cfr Manila, down from $660/t cfr last week. A trader reports making a small-tonnage sale at $650/t cfr Manila earlier this week. "It has been weak since last week; that’s the general consensus," he says. He believes buyers are waiting for a clearer market direction.
Kallanish assessed SAE 1008 6.5mm diameter wire rod at $605-625/t cfr Manila on Thursday, down $5/t on-week.
Similarly, regional rebar import markets have fallen despite mills’ earlier resolve to maintain prices. Certain traders are understood to have triggered falling prices. A Chinese trader sold 8,000 tonnes of rebar for May shipment late last week at $630-640/t cfr Singapore theoretical weight.
Certain Chinese mills are now indicating offers for theoretical-weight rebar at $650-660/t cfr Singapore. However, buyers in Singapore are now seeking to book March, April or May shipments much lower, at $600-620/t cfr. Offers from mills were previously at $665-680/t cfr Singapore. Kallanish lowered its weekly BS4449 500B 10-40mm diameter rebar price to $630-640/t cfr Singapore theoretical weight, down $10 week-on-week.
In Hong Kong, a Chinese actual-weight rebar offer was heard late last week at $630/t cfr, but market sources now say the offer was not real. Rebar offers are all above $655/t cfr actual weight, a Hong Kong importer said on Thursday. Customers are in wait-and-see mode because of the market softening, a Hong Kong trader adds.
Source:Kallanish
