As pessimism spread through the market due to sluggish demand, Chinese hot rolled coil prices fell to new lows last week, along with all other steel products, Kallanish notes.

In Shanghai on Friday afternoon, 5.5x1,500mm Q235 HRC was traded at around CNY 3,750-3,770/tonne ($521-524/t), down CNY 130/t on the prior Friday. On the Shanghai Futures Exchange, the May 2024 contract for HRC lost CNY 9/t from Thursday and CNY 149/t on-week to CNY 3,692/t.

In Wuxi on Friday afternoon, 20x2,000mm Q235B plate prices were assessed at around CNY 3,860-3,880/t, down CNY 130/t from the prior assessment.

Domestic HRC prices hit a five-month low, equal to the lowest level since October 2022. But because of better demand and less negative impact from construction-related end users, flats still outperformed other steel products, mainly rebar.

After facing rapid price cuts, domestic traders vied to limit price drops to less than those seen in futures markets. But after repeated attempts, buyers were still able to secure further discounts, making sellers believe a short-term rebound is unlikely.

The astonishing price drop at home has also dragged down the export market, causing chaos. A large number of exporters were disappointed with the plunge and stayed away from the market for the time being.

For SAE 1006 HRC, limited China-origin offers were at around $565/t cfr Vietnam levels, $10/t lower on-week. “Kim Quoc is offering SAE 1006 HRC at $558-560/t for spot goods now, so no one can compete,” a Vietnam-based trader said on Friday.

For lower-grade HRC, quotes were prevailing at about $510/t fob China to Vietnam, for Q235 HRC, and at $530-535/t fob for SS400 to Gulf Cooperation Council markets. Most Chinese source say they cannot accept such low prices, but deals are expected if the weak situation continues for a longer time.

Kallanish assessed 2mm SAE 1006 HRC at $550-560/t fob China on 15 March, down $7.5/t from a week earlier.