Posted on 17 Oct 2024
China's rebar market experienced further price declines in both the spot and derivatives markets on October 16. Sources noted that market sentiment across the domestic ferrous sector turned more cautious as the impact from macro-economic stimulus support gradually faded.
Mysteel assessed the national price of HRB400E 20mm dia rebar at Yuan 3,847/tonne ($540/t) including 13% VAT on Wednesday, marking another drop of Yuan 34/t from Tuesday.
Similarly, the Chinese futures markets for major ferrous commodities also weakened. For example, the most-traded January rebar contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell by 1.15% from Tuesday's settlement price, closing Wednesday's daytime trading session at Yuan 3,447/t.
The softening of rebar futures prompted six steelmakers across China to lower their ex-works prices for construction steel by Yuan 20-60/t yesterday, according to Mysteel's survey.
Despite mills' price cuts, end-users showed tepid buying interest, and most of them purchased only to meet their immediate needs. Mysteel's data revealed that daily spot trading volumes of construction steel comprising rebar, wire rod, and bar-in-coil at the 237 trading houses across China remained low at 103,611 tonnes, or nudging up by 2.1% on day.
The cautious sentiment extended to the semi-finished steel market as well. Re-rollers were reluctant to accept high prices when sourcing semis. Mysteel's assessment of the Q235 150mm square billet price in North China's Tangshan dropped by Yuan 20/t from Tuesday to Yuan 3,190/t EXW including VAT on Wednesday, marking the third consecutive day of decline.
Source:Mysteel Global
