Imported HRC offers to Vietnam fall on increased supply

HRC offers from Japan and South Korea fell by $15/t w-o-w as Vietnamese buyers have sufficient stocks and were unwilling to buy at high prices.

Chinese offers were largely stable from last week as domestic demand for HRC remains robust in China. A deal for Baosteel HRC was heard at $448-450/t levels this week.

Vietnam has also slowed imports as the rainy season hampered downstream demand for steel mills.

Indian steel mills are less active in the export market, with some offers heard at $435-440/t CFR but Vietnam buyers were unwilling to bid higher than $430/t.

Vietnam buyers expect Indian steel mills to divert cargoes away from China to Vietnam and UAE markets, amid ongoing tensions with China.

Vietnam's dependence on HRC imports has reduced over the last few years as Formosa Ha Tinh started operating the country's largest steel mill with a hot rolling capacity of 5.2mtpa. Additional domestic supplies are also coming in from Hoa Phat which has expanded rolling capacity and plans to supply more HRC to the domestic market by Sep'20.

SteelMint learnt from its authentic market sources that, "Indian steel mills are not in pressure for HRC exports as most of them are booked till mid Aug'20. Also JSW Steel has delayed their export dispatches by almost 20-25 days owing to increased COVID cases in Vijaynagar plant. Thus the company is currently offering HRC $445/t CFR basis (for small parcels).Meanwhile govt owned SAIL is not actively into HRC exports but the company is aggressively selling slabs through its tenders.At the same time, uncertainty in China due to political tensions has led to limited exports from India".