Posted on 22 Oct 2024
Billet prices in Tangshan in North China's Hebei province lost ground during October 14-20, as prices were dragged down by steeply falling steel futures prices last week, according to Mysteel's weekly survey. As the optimism that had initially greeted the central government's macroeconomic policies faded, so the market mood grew depressed, survey respondents said, adding that trading activities in the semis market were also weak overall.
As of October 20, the Tangshan Q235 150mm square billet price under Mysteel's assessment had declined by Yuan 170/tonne ($23.9/t) on week to Yuan 3,090/t EXW and including the 13% VAT.
Meanwhile, daily billet consumption among the 44 re-rollers in Tangshan under Mysteel's tracking edged up 2,300 tonnes/day on week over October 10-16 to average 51,000 t/d. The demand for the semis rose modestly from the previous week due to improved sales of finished steel among the rollers. But the survey results suggested that billet consumption would decline in the near term, with cautious sentiment dominating the market and given the slowdown in finished steel sales recently.
By October 16, billet inventories among the sampled 44 re-rollers had mounted slightly by 16,000 tonnes on week to 511,000 tonnes, due to their increased buying activities, according to the survey.
On the other hand, total billet stocks across the four commercial warehouses and two ports in Tangshan that Mysteel monitors had thinned by 72,100 tonnes on week to 1.29 million tonnes as of October 17.
On the supply side, daily billet output among the 23 steelmakers in Tangshan that Mysteel checks saw a tiny uptick of 1,500 t/d on week to average 45,700 t/d over October 11-17, as only a few mills had increased their supplies of the semis to the market, the survey findings showed.
The steep price drop in the semis caused local billet makers to begin losing money once again, with the average loss on billet sales endured by the ten integrated mills in Tangshan that Mysteel monitors reaching Yuan 88/t on October 18, against the profit of Yuan 56/t in the previous week.
Meanwhile, the average per tonne cost these mills had incurred when producing the billets widened by Yuan 44/t on week to Yuan 3,178/t including the 13% VAT last week, the survey found.
Source:Mysteel Global