Japan: Tokyo Steel keeps prices unchanged for Oct'23 deliveries

Tokyo Steel, Japan's top electric arc furnace steelmaker, has kept steel prices unchanged m-o-m for October 2023 sales, as per the latest price list unveiled today.

Effective prices:

HRC (1.7-22mm): JPY 105,000/tonne (t) ($710/t)

Rebar (D13~25): JPY 98,000/t ($663/t)

H-beam (100-300mm): JPY 127,000/t ($859/t).

Factors supporting prices:

Mixed global cues - The Japanese steel major has kept its prices unchanged on account of low global demand. Sources informed that the market is dull due to a hot summer and seasonal factors. Meanwhile, steel mills across the globe have shown mixed trends in their monthly sales prices. For instance, the world's largest steelmaker, China's Baosteel, has raised HRC prices by RMB 50/t ($14/t) m-o-m for October sales.

Meanwhile, Vietnam's Formosa Ha Tinh (FHS) has decreased its domestic HRC (SAE1006, skinpassed) prices by $13/t to $593-597/t CIF Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) for late-October and early-November sales.

Stability in Japan's crude steel output - Japan's crude steel output was recorded at 7.4 mnt in July, stable m-o-m. The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) of Japan announced on 8 August that crude steel production in the country is expected to increase by 1.9% y-o-y to 22.23 mnt in the July-September period (Q3CY23).

Decline in domestic demand - Steel demand in Japan has declined significantly since April due to a combination of factors including intense heat, rising material prices, and labour shortages. This has led to a decrease in the operation rate of construction sites and monthly steel sales volumes.

The movement of domestic construction steel products in the market has been slow on the whole. In the primary processing business, major fabricators have a considerable backlog of orders, and demand is likely to remain resilient, mainly for large-scale projects, from autumn onwards.