[SMM Iron & Steel] China Rebar Futures Hit Two-Month Low Amid Weak Demand Outlook

South Korea's Ministry of Strategy and Finance has imposed provisional antidumping (AD) duties ranging from 22.34% to 33.67% on imports of certain Chinese coated steel products with a thickness below 4.75 mm, effective from June 12, 2026, until October 11, 2026. The duties target galvanized, zinc-aluminum, or zinc-aluminum-manganese alloy-coated cold-rolled sheets and coils. Under the company-specific rates, Baogang Steel Union received the lowest duty of 22.34%, Shougang Jingtang was assigned 26.28%, Hong Kong-based Wing Tung Holdings received the highest at 33.67%, and other Chinese producers are subject to 25.75%. This trade defense measure highlights South Korea's aggressive steps to protect its domestic flat steel producers from material injury caused by dumped imports, a move that is likely to sharply reduce the market share of Chinese coated steel in the region and provide a pricing floor for local mills, before potentially being extended into definitive five-year duties.

South Korea-based Hyundai Steel has signed a master research agreement with Louisiana State University (LSU) to support technology development and workforce training for its planned $5.8 billion electric arc furnace-based integrated steel mill at RiverPlex MegaPark in Ascension Parish, Louisiana. Built jointly with POSCO, the facility is scheduled for completion in 2029 and will primarily produce automotive steel sheets for Hyundai Motor Group's US plants. The collaboration will leverage LSU's advanced research infrastructure, including the Louisiana Light Source synchrotron facility, focusing on low-carbon energy solutions and next-generation materials. This strategic partnership indicates Hyundai's commitment to securing localized green steel supply chains and skilled labor in the US, positioning the company to meet tightening North American automotive decarbonization targets.

The benchmark price for premium heavy melting scrap (HMS 1&2 80:20) exported from the United States east coast to the primary Turkish import hub suffered a steep correction, dropping by $14 per metric ton week-on-week to settle at $388 per ton CFR. Trading desks confirmed that the rapid price deterioration reflects a complete freeze in forward replacement bookings by Turkish electric arc furnace (EAF) mills. Facing heavily compressed domestic and export rebar rolling margins, Mediterranean producers are actively lowering structural melting utilization rates and rejecting high-priced international raw metal inputs.