As the Lunar New Year is approaching, the transaction volume of the Chinese steel market has shrunk sharply, and construction projects have also been shut down one after another. The average daily volume of construction steel fell by 44.11% month on month and by 54.75% year on year. Therefore, some mills have arranged annual maintenance or cut production, and the market supply continues to decrease. However, higher production costs supported steel prices, and it was expected that prices will stabilize before the festival.

According to statistics, the prices of major steel types rose slightly last week, among which hot-rolled plates and hot-rolled coils increased by more than 1%. Considering factors such as market expectations and production costs, it was expected that prices this week will be roughly flat.

18 Jan 2023 17:18 reported by Alston Tsai