Near-term outlook on China's key steel products

Below is the brief near-term outlook of the five key steel products Mysteel shares on a weekly basis, drawing upon the results of related surveys and communication with the Chinese market participants.

Rebar & wire rod: The prices of these longs may soften over May 16-20, as demand from end-users remained dull with COVID-induced disruptions and heavy rainfalls in South China. Meanwhile, rebar stocks at 137 Chinese steelmakers under Mysteel's survey gained 6.1% on week to 3.6 million tonnes as of May 11.

Hot-rolled coil: This price may decline in the week ending May 20, as stocks at traders has been accumulating amid sluggish demand from end-users. As of May 12, HRC stocks at 194 warehouses in 55 Chinese cities under Mysteel's tracking grew by 0.4% on week to 4 million tonnes.

Cold-rolled coil: The price may be narrowly range-bound this week, as most traders held a cautious stance of buying on the bearish sentiment, and demand from end-users was lackluster due to COVID-induced restrictions and disrupted logistics.

Medium plate: The price is likely to ease over May 16-20, as some traders have been willing to offload some stocks at lower prices to maintain sufficient cash flows at hand.

Section: This price is expected to lose some ground this week, as demand won't pick up until the pandemic is to be fully brought under control. As of May 15, the Q235 150mm square billet price in Tangshan, North China's Hebei province, dropped Yuan 130/tonne ($19.1/t) on week to Yuan 4,580/t EXW and including the 13% VAT, according to Mysteel's assessment.

Written by Villanelle Xia, xiayi@mysteel.com

Note: This article has been published in accordance with an article exchange agreement between MySteel Global and SteelMint.