Posted on 09 Apr 2024
Mysteel's assessment of the price of Q235 150mm square billet in North China's Tangshan was largely rangebound last week, reaching Yuan 3,280/tonne ($453/t) EXW and including the 13% VAT as of April 7, rising by Yuan 30/t on week. During the week, re-rollers in Tangshan were cautious regarding buying the semis, the results of the weekly survey show, and overall spot billet trading was lackluster due to China's Qingming Festival holiday over April 4-6.
Meanwhile, steelmakers saw their losses on billet sales narrow last week as prices of the semis bounced back while the mills' production costs eased, the survey pointed out.
Consequently, the average cost of producing billets incurred by the ten integrated mills in Tangshan under Mysteel's tracking decreased by Yuan 66/t on week to Yuan 3,315/t including the 13% VAT last week. In tandem, the average loss the mills suffered when selling them narrowed by Yuan 46/t on week to Yuan 35/t on April 7. Sunday was officially a substitute working day in China after the Qingming holiday.
On the supply side, daily billet output among the 24 steelmakers in Tangshan that Mysteel follows regularly, slipped by 1,600 tonnes/day on week to average 36,900 t/d over March 29-April 4. "Billet supplies stayed largely stable during the period, and only a few mills lifted their finished steel output while reducing their production of the semis," a survey respondent said.
On the other hand, the daily consumption of billets among the 48 re-rollers in Tangshan that Mysteel checks averaged 50,300 t/d over March 28-April 3, lower by 6,300 t/d on week, as their demand for the semis weakened slightly due to steel-price volatility and mounting stocks of finished steel at their yards.
Moreover, Mysteel's data showed that billet inventories held by the 48 sampled re-rollers had increased by 27,800 tonnes on week to 397,600 tonnes as of April 3. In contrast, total billet stocks across four commercial warehouses and two ports in Tangshan declined by 91,400 tonnes on week to 1.04 million tonnes as of April 4.
Source:Mysteel Global
