National Mainstream Cities' HRC Offer Drops by 10 Yuan/MT, Export Prices Stable

[SMM Silicone Weekly Review: Overall Market Gradually Enters Holiday Season, All Product Prices Remain Stable] This week, domestic silicone DMC prices continued to remain stable, with the mainstream transaction range at 13,800-14,000 yuan/mt, flat WoW. By region, monomer enterprises in Shandong quoted 13,800 yuan/mt, while other major monomer enterprises quoted 14,000 yuan/mt. Demand side, as the Chinese New Year holiday approaches, midstream and downstream enterprises increased holidays, market transactions generally decreased, and new order activity was overall sluggish.

This week, HRC social inventory stood at 2.6792 million mt, up 123,700 mt WoW, an increase of 4.84% WoW, down 5.83% YoY, and up 36.18% on a lunar calendar basis. This week, HRC mill inventory was 1.0832 million mt, up 12,500 mt WoW, an increase of 1.17% WoW, down 9.62% YoY, and down 4.11% on a lunar calendar basis. This week, total HRC inventory reached 3.7623 million mt, up 136,200 mt WoW, an increase of 3.76% WoW, down 6.95% YoY, and up 21.49% on a lunar calendar basis.

[Market Activity Remains Low, Post-Holiday GO Silicon Steel Prices Expected to Remain in the Doldrums] Futures side, HRC futures fluctuated downward this week, exerting some downward pressure on the cost side of silicon steel, with some traders adopting a cautious wait-and-see approach. Demand side, affected by the approaching Chinese New Year holiday, downstream enterprises gradually suspended operations for the holiday, leading to a significant contraction in procurement demand. Market transactions were largely stagnant in the latter part of the week, with only minimal just-in-time procurement sustaining market activity.