This week, HRC import trade activity has remained robust as Emirati customers have continued to restock, but this time only from Japanese suppliers since their offers remain among the lowest in the market. Meanwhile, Chinese suppliers, who are generally one of the preferred importers in the UAE, have decided to increase their offer prices amid the positive outlook caused by rising futures prices and the Chinese government’s announcement of a loosening of monetary policy for 2025.
As a result, Japanese suppliers recently sold 20,000 mt of HRC to UAE-based pipe makers at $522/mt CFR, while offers from Japan to the UAE are now at $525-540/mt CFR, a decrease from $540/mt CFR last week.
On the contrary, Chinese suppliers have raised SS400 grade HRC offers for January shipment to $530-550/mt CFR, up from $515-525/mt CFR in the previous week. However, market sources report that, because trading is still slow, some Chinese suppliers are providing lower levels at roughly $525/mt CFR to the UAE.
Meanwhile, Indian suppliers, despite having higher pricing levels in the import market and being less appealing to UAE buyers, have maintained their offers of $550-560/mt CFR for January shipment, unchanged from last week.