Posted on 02 Jan 2024
Yieh United Steel Corp (Yusco), Taiwan's largest stainless steel producer headquartered in Kaohsiung in South Taiwan, has decided to adopt 'individual prices' for sales in January 2024, given the uncertainty surrounding stainless demand, Mysteel Global has learned.
Individual pricing means that for January business, the company will refrain from announcing list prices and instead, will negotiate prices with customers individually, Mysteel Global notes. This marks the second time for the stainless giant to adopt such a pricing policy after that in May, and Yusco's decision has come as a surprise.
Earlier this week, market participants had expected that leading stainless producers in Taiwan would raise their list prices for January sales or roll them over, in view of the stability of stainless steelmaking raw materials prices and the improved sentiment.
Global nickel prices have stayed rangebound this month, with three-month nickel futures on the London Metal Exchange closing at $16,734/t on December 28, as against $16,766/t recorded one month earlier, according to the exchange's data.
Besides, stainless prices in mainland China have increased somewhat, driven by the better performance of the stainless futures market, as reported. In addition, the accident at a nickel plant on Indonesia's Sulawesi Island on December 24 and the likelihood of ongoing production disruptions also lifted market sentiment to some extent.
As of December 28, the spot price of 304/2B 2mm stainless cold-rolled coil in Wuxi, a major stainless trading hub in East China's Jiangsu, was assessed by Mysteel at Yuan 14,300/tonne ($2,016/t) in-warehouse and including the 13% VAT, up Yuan 100/t on month or higher by Yuan 400/t from the recent low on December 12.
Apart from Yusco, Tang Eng Iron Works, another leading stainless producer headquartered in Kaohsiung, also adopted a similar policy for business discussions in January to monitor market changes in the coming month. This marked the ninth consecutive month for the company to adopt such a price policy, Mysteel Global noted.
However, Walsin Lihwa, a major stainless producer headquartered in Taipei in North Taiwan, has decided to hike its list prices of 300-series stainless products by TWD 2,000/tonne ($65/t) for local sales next month to reflect the higher production costs, the market source added.
Source:Mysteel Global
