China's hot-rolled coil exporters raised their offers on Tuesday December 17 despite a stable domestic market amid improved sentiment as a result of easing tensions between the country and the United States.
Domestic
Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,880-3,890 yuan ($556-557) per tonne, unchanged
Northern China (Tangshan): 3,640-3,650 yuan per tonne, unchanged
Market participants expect domestic prices to experience some short-term stability with supply still being relatively tight in the eastern region in particular.
A Shanghai-based trader said his customers had slowed down on buying, partly because the cargoes they booked previously were being delivered gradually of late.
Many end users had placed advance orders with traders at lower prices in September and October on the expectation that the market would weaken at the year-end. But HRC prices did not fall as anticipated, to the benefit of these end users who effectively managed to lower their cost.
Supply remained relatively...