[SMM Steel] Vietnam Import HRC Market Weakens as Buyers Push Lower

[SMM HRC Daily Trading] On July 22, the combined daily trading volume of hot-rolled coil from sample enterprises in SMM’s four cities (Shanghai, Lecong, Tianjin, Ningbo) was 12,270 mt, a day-on-day increase of 270 mt (+2.3%), a YoY decline of 27.14% on the Gregorian calendar, and a YoY decline of 12.98% on the lunar calendar.

Dr. Akbar Djohan, director of Krakatau Steel said that this collaboration will help Krakatau Steel to be a one-stop solution in the development of national advanced materials. There is a potential of IDR 66 trillion if the implementation of downstreaming and integration of several advanced steel material is happened. This collaboration not only improve the advanced steel chain, but also improve national industry to be more competitive and support Indonesia's inudstrialization target.

. Intraday, the most-traded HRC contract moved sideways, closing at 3282, down 0.06%. In the spot market, HRC spot prices fell by 5-10 yuan/mt, while cold-rolled coil spot prices remained stable. Supply side, this week, the impact from hot-rolling maintenance was 185,100 mt, up 5,800 mt WoW. Next week, the impact from hot-rolling maintenance is expected to be 192,100 mt, up 7,000 mt WoW. Overall HRC supply pressure moved sideways. Demand side, sheets & plates remained in the off-season, and speculative demand was rarely seen. Cost side, daily average hot metal output fell by 13,500 mt this week, and the first round of coke price cuts was implemented. If raw materials lack disruptive factors, the short-term state will remain in the doldrums. Overall, earlier concentrated arrivals of resources in South China led to accelerated inventory accumulation. Inventories in other regions also continued to edge up slightly, and the supply-demand imbalance continued to widen. However, as long as macro expectations are not disappointed, HRC prices will continue to consolidate in the short term.