[SMM Stainless Steel Daily Review] Macro headwinds fully priced in, SS stops falling and strengthens; stainless steel spot cargo follows the rise, downstream acceptance of high prices remains limited
[SMM Stainless Steel Daily Review] Macro Headwinds Eased, SS Stopped Falling and Strengthened; Stainless Steel Spot Prices Followed Gains, Downstream Acceptance of High Prices Limited
According to SMM on September 18, SS futures shot up further and strengthened. After the US Fed's rate hike landed, nonferrous metals futures rebounded collectively, and SS stopped falling and strengthened in tandem. As of this morning's close, the most-traded SS contract settled at 13,700 yuan/mt. In the spot market, as SS futures strengthened, stainless steel spot offers followed the gains. Although inquiries and transactions recovered somewhat from the sluggish pattern seen earlier this week, downstream acceptance of high-priced cargoes remained limited. In addition, demand had already been largely released in the early stage of the rebound after hitting bottom, so overall transactions remained stable.
SS futures most-traded contract. At 10:15 a.m., SS2611 was reported at 13,675 yuan/mt, up 120 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. Spot premiums for 304/2B in Wuxi were in the 595-795 yuan/mt range. In the spot market, the average price of cold-rolled 201/2B coils in Wuxi was flat; for cold-rolled unedged 304/2B coils, the average price in Wuxi rose 50 yuan/mt, while the average price in Foshan was flat; cold-rolled 316L/2B coil prices in Wuxi were flat; hot-rolled 316L/NO.1 coil offers in Wuxi were flat; cold-rolled 430/2B coils in both Wuxi and Foshan were flat.
This week, the overall market was dominated by a weak atmosphere. The nonferrous metals sector collectively hit bottom, dragging SS futures down continuously, with prices briefly dipping to a low of 13,290 yuan/mt during the session. Following the US Fed's rate hike, previously accumulated macro headwinds were released in a concentrated manner and largely exhausted for the time being, and market pessimism eased marginally, ...