Indian CRC export offers to EU decline by $5/t w-o-w in recent deal
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Indian CRC export offers to the Europe Union (EU) fell by $5/tonne (t) w-o-w to $735/t CFR Antwerp ($690t FOB east coast India) against $740-745/t CFR Antwerp seen in the previous week. A deal of around 5,000 t has been heard concluded at these above-mentioned price levels. But, buyers, overall, have adopted a wait-and-watch approach.
Global market overview
Global market sentiments: Although Indian offers were down, Chinese CRC export offers rose by $5/t w-o-w to $620/t FOB for the week as compared to $615/t FOB a week ago, following the rise in Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) HRC futures this week.
Chinese SHFE HRC futures rose by RMB 52/t ($7/t) w-o-w to RMB 3,802/t ($525/t) on 17 April against RMB 3,750/t ($518/t) on 10 April. Moreover, on d-o-d basis, the same edged up by RMB 18/t ($2/t) d-o-d against RMB 3,784/t ($523/t) on 16 April.
The futures rose possibly because of somewhat better domestic steel demand in certain segments. For instance, China's automobile sales in March rose almost 10% y-o-y to 2.694 million units as per data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM). Moreover, sales saw an increase of 70% m-o-m against 1.584 million units in February, respectively.
Domestic EU market sentiments: In the European Union (EU) domestic demand continues to remain sluggish as buyers hold off on purchases, believing HRC prices haven't hit their lowest point yet. Weak demand is keeping buyers on the sidelines.
Even with European mills offering lower prices to attract buyers, trading activity remains slow. Moreover, one of the manufacturers shut down its blast furnace in the first half of April 2024.
Indian HRC export prices to Europe (S275, 3mm) declined by around $5-10/t w-o-w to $630-635/t CFR Antwerp ($580-585/t) FOB east coast India against $640-645/t CFR last week.
Outlook: Steel prices in Europe dipped slightly, due to low trading activity. The outlook remains mixed as major Indian mills have planned maintenance shutdowns. Additionally, buyers are holding off on purchases because they expect prices to drop even lower. European steel producers, on the other hand, are resistant to lowering prices further due to their high production costs.