The impact of US tariffs has not yet been revealed, and the downstream stainless steel industry is cautiously observing. [SMM Stainless Steel Spot Daily Review]

On April 18, the SS futures prices showed a trend of rising first and then stabilizing this week. At the beginning of the week, prices rose slightly, then entered a period of overall fluctuation. Although the US tariff policy has eased, the market has not completely shaken off its impact, and cautious sentiment remains strong. Downstream customers' willingness to purchase is low, and market transactions are mainly based on low-priced warrant sources, with non-standard products even more difficult to trade. Although there are signs of tentative price increases in the market, the actual transaction situation is not ideal. Under the dual influence of unclear macro news and gradually weakening cost support, stainless steel prices remained stable this week. In the spot market, the cold-rolled 201/2B coil in Wuxi and Foshan was quoted at 8,300 yuan/mt; the cold-rolled trimmed 304/2B coil had an average price of 13,200 yuan/mt in Wuxi and 13,225 yuan/mt in Foshan; the cold-rolled 316L/2B coil in Wuxi was priced at 23,650 yuan/mt, while in Foshan it was 23,800 yuan/mt; the hot-rolled 316L/NO.1 coil was quoted at 22,900 yuan/mt in both regions; the cold-rolled 430/2B coil in Wuxi and Foshan was priced at 7,500 yuan/mt. Currently, macro factors significantly outweigh fundamental factors in the stainless steel market. Against this backdrop, stainless steel practitioners have divergent views on the future market direction, and market expectations are highly uncertain. Although the actual impact of the US tariff policy has not yet fully manifested, the stainless steel market is already facing real issues such as weakening cost support and insufficient consumer demand. As a result, cautious sentiment in the market is unlikely to dissipate in the short term, and stainless steel price trends will remain deeply influenced by fluctuations in macro news.