The price increased amid increasing offers from competitors
Baosteel, a subsidiary of China's largest steelmaker China Baowu Steel Group, has raised domestic hot rolled coil (HRC) prices for March sales by 100 yuan/t ($14/t). This is reported by SteelMint .
In February sales, prices for these products remained unchanged.
Furthermore, the company's plate prices increased by 100 yuan/ton compared with the previous month.
The company's prices rose amid increased supply from competitors, such as Japan's Tokyo Steel. However, hot-rolled coil futures on the Shanghai Stock Exchange remained volatile as China's Lunar New Year approached.
Baosteel does not disclose the actual prices of its individual products in its monthly pricing policy, only announcing the adjustment amount.
According to the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA), steel prices in China will remain in a limited range in the near term due to weakness in both supply and demand. The local steel market is in its traditional winter off-season.
Global hot rolled coil prices have increased in key markets since the start of 2024. In Europe, prices were supported by a low supply of locally produced products and exhaustion of import quotas. In the US, a similar trend was observed, but supply still exceeded demand, which restricted price growth. In the Chinese market, prices have remained stable since mid-December last year.
As previously reported by us, China increased its finished steel production by 5.2% year-on-year to 1.36 billion tons in 2023. In December, finished steel production increased by 1.5% year-on-year – to 108.5 million tons.
