Seasonal Factor Affected the Apparent Consumption of Rebar and HRC in Opposite Ways

SHANGHAI, Jan 18 (SMM) - In terms of rebar, the futures prices outperformed the spot. The terminal sector mostly purchased on rigid demand, and the logistics and construction projects were affected by both the resurging COVID-19 pandemic and the CNY holiday, resulting in sluggish transactions Looking forward, most construction projects will be suspended for CNY holiday in mid and late January, when the demand for rebar will be reduced to nearly zero.

For HRC, the downstream will be less affected by the seasonal factor, and there still exists some restocking demand in the terminal sector. Going forward, the apparent demand for HRC is expected to weaken seasonally when the terminal and the traders take or plan to take holiday one after another.