[SMM Lecong HRC Inventory] Le stock de HRC à Lecong a continué de s'accumuler cette semaine.

Today, HRC’s the most-traded contract fluctuated downward, closing at 3,380 yuan/mt, up 0.6% from the previous trading day. Spot sheets & plates prices rose 10-20 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. In terms of supply, this week, the impact from maintenance on hot rolling totaled 74,100 mt, down 156,400 mt WoW. Next week’s impact from maintenance on hot rolling is expected at 23,100 mt, down 51,000 mt WoW. Supply pressure sustained its uptrend this month. Demand side, futures rebounded near the close, improving market trading from the previous trading day. Trading was mostly at low prices, with some buyers taking advantage of the spot-futures price spread to purchase on dips. Cost side, near the close today, market rumors suggested that a major mine signaled a halt on certifying blended super special fines, driving iron ore futures to surge. However, subsequent rumors refuted this, causing futures to fluctuate sharply. For coking coal and coke, the spot market saw tight supply-demand dynamics, and they are expected to recover some losses in the short term. Overall, according to the regional HRC inventory data released today, except for South China, most regions maintained destocking. The supply-demand imbalance remains not significant, and they are expected to continue their sideways trend in the short term, with attention on disruptions in the raw material supply.

La société minière publique NMDC et le sidérurgiste SAIL étudient l'acquisition d'actifs de charbon à coke en Russie afin de sécuriser leurs approvisionnements en matières premières, selon des sources industrielles. L'Inde a envoyé une délégation en Russie en mai pour des discussions préliminaires, et SAIL a mis en place un comité interne pour évaluer les opportunités. Actuellement, l'Australie fournit plus de la moitié des besoins de l'Inde en charbon à coke, la Russie ne détenant qu'une part mineure. L'Inde cherche également à diversifier ses importations de nickel en provenance de Russie. Le charbon à coke a été désigné comme minéral stratégique critique par le gouvernement indien.