Posted on 11 Nov 2026
Baoshan Iron & Steel Co (Baosteel), the listed arm of the world's top steelmaker China Baowu Steel Group, is keeping the list prices for its major flat-rolled steel products including hot-rolled coils (HRC) unchanged for domestic sales in December, according to the company's latest pricing announcement issued on November 10.
Last month, Baosteel had also rolled over its list prices for domestic sales in November, as Mysteel Global reported.
The decision to again roll over the all prices reflected the mill's efforts to stabilize market sentiment amid weak domestic demand and squeezed steelmaking margins, while exports and relatively low production offered some support to the flat steel prices, a Shanghai-based ferrous analyst indicated.
In particular, demand for hot coils remains uneven across downstream sectors. Infrastructure projects continue to provide relatively stable steel consumption, while private investment and steel-intensive manufacturing, including automobiles, home appliances and consumer electronics, remain under pressure, he commented.
Under these circumstances, exports have become a key source of demand support, with relatively resilient infrastructure-related consumption in South America and the Middle East providing outlets for Chinese steel.
Although export margins remain below previous highs, overseas orders are still more attractive than increasingly competitive domestic sales, prompting mills to divert more steel products abroad to ease domestic supply pressure, the analyst said.
On the supply side, production adjustments have helped prevent excessive inventory accumulation. However, destocking remains slow as end-users largely purchase on a hand-to-mouth basis and traders show little appetite for speculative restocking, according to the analyst.
For Baosteel, keeping December prices unchanged helps anchor market expectations and avoids further undermining of spot hot coil prices. On November 9, Mysteel assessed the national spot price of Q235B 4.75mm HRC at Yuan 3,218/tonne ($482/t) including the 13% VAT, lower by Yuan 74/t or 2.2% on month.
For Baosteel, further price cuts could offer limited stimulus to demand while putting additional pressure on margins, he added.
The near-term outlook remains cautious, with no clear signs of a sustained recovery in demand, the analyst observed. Therefore, Baosteel's pricing decision reflects a strategy of preserving prices while waiting for market conditions to improve, rather than a sigh of confidence in an imminent rebound, he concluded.
Source:Mysteel Global
