Posted on 26 Mar 2024
The price of Q235 150mm square billet in Tangshan in North China's Hebei province, the country's largest steel production hub, rebounded by Yuan 100/tonne ($13.9/t) on week to reach 3,410/t EXW and including the 13% VAT as of March 24, Mysteel's assessment showed.
The billet prices gained some support from Chinese rebar futures prices which trended upwards last week and lifting the market mood. Higher their finished steel sales prompted re-rollers in Tangshan to become active in buying the semis for replenishment, according to Mysteel's weekly survey.
Accordingly, daily billet consumption among the 48 re-rollers in Tangshan that Mysteel monitors reversed up by 17,300 tonnes/day on week to average 58,200 t/d over March 14-20, with their capacity utilization and operational rates rising in tandem, the survey showed.
At the same time, the stocks of billets at the re-rollers' yards mounted by 50,200 tonnes on week to reach 420,200 tonnes as of March 20, as a result of their busier buying.
Amid the pick-up in consumption, billet stocks in retail warehouses declined last week, with total inventories across the four commercial warehouses and two ports in Tangshan checked by Mysteel thinning by 76,500 tonnes on week to a two-month low of 1.3 million tonnes by March 21.
On the supply side, the 24 steelmakers in Tangshan under Mysteel's tracking saw their daily billet production stay largely stable on week at 37,000 t/d on average over March 15-21, nudging down by a mere 200 t/d.
Meanwhile, the average loss incurred by the ten integrated mills under Mysteel's coverage on billet sales eased by a large Yuan 156/t on week to Yuan 71/t by March 22, thanks to the fall in their production costs and rising billet prices.
Mysteel's survey showed that the average costs the mills bore on their production of billet dropped by Yuan 86/t on week to Yuan 3,481/t including the 13% VAT last week.
Source:Mysteel Global
