Near-term outlook on China's steel products

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

Rebar, wire rod: Prices of the two long steel products will likely stay marginally volatile over 15 July-19 July, against the backdrop of weak production and demand. Most traders prefer to lower their stocks of the longs amid the non-peak month for steel consumption, and their sentiment remains cautious.

Hot-rolled coil: This price may fluctuate downward in the week through 19 July, due to high production and inventories. Meanwhile, demand from end-users may hardly improve amid hot and rainy days across many parts of the country. The output of hot-rolled coils among the 37 flat steel producers nationwide under Mysteel's tracking over 4-10 July hit a three-year high of 3.31 million tonnes (mnt), or higher by 1.6% or 51,900 tonnes (t) on week and registering a three-week rise.

Cold-rolled coil: This price is estimated to weaken in the week ending 19 July, due to the imbalance between supply and demand in the spot market. Some traders state that their CRC stocks are at a high level due to tepid sales, and they have been suffering margin losses.

Medium plate: This price may decline amid volatility over 15-19 July, chiefly pressured by bleak market sentiment and slack demand from end-users, a South China's Guangdong-based market insider predicted. He noted that plate users will not be keen to purchase the product, while traders are unlikely to stock up on steel plates either.

Sections: The sections' prices are forecast to downtrend this week. The overall demand for sections remains lacklustre, and end-users only procure small quantities for their immediate needs. On the supply side, production of steel sections may persist low due to the remaining high stocks at mills.

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