4/15/2010
NEWS BRIEFS
More Steel Hikes Announced
For the fourth time in five months, China’s Wuhan Iron and Steel Co. hikes its prices by as much as 500 yuan (US$73.25) per ton, Shanghai Securities News reported. Wuhan Steel insiders were quoted as saying that the current increase does go far enough to offset iron ore and coke price surges and that “further adjustment is possible.”
Wuhan Steel had raised April prices for hot- and cold-rolled steel by 300 yuan a ton, and for galvanized steel by 200 yuan a ton.
Other steel mills have also reportedly raised prices, with the frequency of hikes growing from once a month to one every ten days, though much of that has been driven by traders instead of end users.
Earlier this month, China Steel of Taiwan announced across-the-board domestic price hikes averaging 10%, or NT$2,212 per metric ton. Bar and wire rod will jump NT$1,600 for June.
Global steel demand growth in 2010 is predicted to hit 10.2%, hampered by strained raw material supply in the wake of China’s record-breaking steel production.
The 10% increase, which surprised some analysts in light of a US$160-$200 hike in production cost per metric ton of blast furnace for iron ore and coking coal, reportedly is to allow domestic customers, mostly small-to-medium in size, more time to adjust for the cost jump for the purpose of strengthening the downstream customers’ global competitiveness. CSC leaves room for further price markup in the next quarter.
Steel mills in China reportedly have hiked prices for wire by RMB 200 – 400 (US$27-$58) per ton, with further increases expected in the near future. ©2010 GlobalFastenerNews.com
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