Ex-China cold rolled coil (CRC) prices have indicated decreases over the past week despite the slight recovery seen in local and futures offers.
At present, export offers for CRC given by major Chinese mills are at around $550-565/mt FOB, for December shipment, moving down by $10/mt on average week on week. Meanwhile, the tradable levels for ex-China CRC have been heard at $550-560/mt FOB, versus the range of $555-565/mt recorded last week.
During the given week, CRC prices in the Chinese domestic market have seen slight rises amid increasing HRC futures prices. However, some market players have maintained a wait-and-see stance as regards the future prospects for the CRC market. Inventory of CRC has decreased slightly, bolstering prices to a certain degree. Demand for CRC has not been as good as market players had expected, which may exert a negative impact on prices. It is thought that CRC prices in the Chinese domestic market will likely fluctuate within a limited range in the coming week.
Average domestic 1.0 mm cold rolled coil spot prices in China are at RMB 3,897/mt ($547/mt) ex-warehouse, increasing by RMB 17/mt ($2.4/mt) compared to October 23, according to SteelOrbis’ information.
As of October 30, HRC futures at the Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 3,588/mt ($503/mt), increasing by RMB 112/mt ($16/mt) or 3.2 percent since October 23, while down 0.06 percent compared to the previous trading day, October 29.
$1 = RMB 7.139