Posted on 09 Nov 2021
Over November 1-5, China's domestic steel prices including rebar and hot-rolled coil (HRC) eased further in both the spot and futures markets. Raw materials prices had also declined, mainly due to the dull market sentiment, Mysteel Global noted.
Rebar: China's national price of HRB400E 20mm dia rebar under Mysteel's assessment declined for the fourth consecutive week, down by another Yuan 345/tonne ($53.9/t) on week to reach a four-month low of Yuan 5,016/t including the 13% VAT as of November 5. Steel demand remained tepid last week, and bearish sentiment prevailed in the market.
Last week, spot trading volume of construction steel including rebar, wire rod and bar-in-coil among China's 237 steel traders under Mysteel's tracking reversed down 1.5% or 2,508 tonnes/day on week to average 169,361 t/d, a level considered normal at the outset of winter.
As of November 5, the most-traded rebar contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) for January 2022 retreated for the fourth straight week too, down by Yuan 443/t from the settlement price on October 29 to close at Yuan 4,247/t when the daytime trading session ended. Subsequently, its backwardation against the Shanghai spot rebar price widened to Yuan 683/t from Yuan 594/t a week earlier.
Billet: By November 5, the Q235 150mm square billet price in North China's Tangshan, a key indicator of the domestic steel market sentiment, remained unchanged on week at Yuan 4,900/t EXW including the VAT, according to Mysteel's assessment.
HRC: China's national price of Q235 4.75mm HRC under Mysteel's assessment also registered a fourth consecutive on-week decline. Hot coils lost Yuan 323/t on week to reach Yuan 5,140/t including the 13% VAT on November 5 while spot sales decreased moderately compared with the previous week. End-users procured coils chiefly for their immediate demand.
The SHFE's most-traded HRC contract for January 2022 delivery also declined by Yuan 468/t from the settlement price on October 29, to close at Yuan 4,569/t when the daytime trading session ended on November 5. Its backwardation against the Shanghai spot HRC price climbed to Yuan 381/t from Yuan 317/t in the prior week.
Source:Mysteel Global
