In the previous week, slow consumption slowed down the price increase plans of many factories. In this week, rising inventories have caused many items' prices to decrease slightly or show signs of a slight decline. The rapid price increase in March has led to market adjustments in April. The downward trend will be more evident in the coming week but remains mild. Factories are all cautious about reducing prices as raw material and production costs are still high.

 Imported scrap market:

This week, the imported scrap market maintains a high level of stability, even though the Kanto auction session this month increased by 28 USD/ton compared to the previous month. Scrap prices in Japan are still rising, but in many other countries, they are decreasing. The market is showing a tug-of-war situation. Prices are no longer unidirectional but have many contrasting developments. Vietnamese buyers have also become more cautious in their import transactions.

 Domestic scrap market:

At the beginning of the week, some southern factories raised prices, but by the end of the week, prices had decreased slightly. The downward trend is not yet clear for large factories as for smaller ones, especially in the northern region. The purchasing prices of scrap yards have also shown signs of slight adjustments downward. As construction steel prices remain high, significant fluctuations in scrap processing are unlikely to occur, but the pressure for a decrease is increasing, especially as billet prices continue to decrease slightly.

 Exported steel billet market:

There have been billet transactions, and factories are still actively quoting prices. However, the export market is still challenging as China is heavily affected by the pandemic, so even with reduced export prices, the trading volume has not increased much. Therefore, prices may continue to decrease slightly in the coming week, putting pressure on the domestic market, including scrap, billet, and construction steel.

 Domestic steel billet market:

The market remains less active, with more offers than purchase inquiries. Prices have decreased slightly by 100-200 VND/kg due to the lack of momentum in exports and weak domestic consumption of construction steel. At this time, the prices of construction steel and scrap remain the two main factors preventing a steep decline in domestic billet prices. However, the downward pressure is increasing.

 Imported HRC market:

India is still not offering, but it is not ruled out that they will return at the end of the month as HRC prices in India have decreased, and the country has resumed its traditional markets in West Asia. This week, HRC prices from China continue to fluctuate, with import price quotations generally decreasing by 10-30 USD/ton, affecting the prices of Formosa and Hoa Phat and causing a decline in Vietnam's retail market.

 Domestic HRC market:

Prices continue to decrease slightly across the board, by 100-200 VND/kg, similar to the previous week, and demand remains relatively weak. Notably, the HRC price from Formosa has only increased slightly by 20 USD/ton this month, compared to 90-95 USD/ton in previous months. With this trend, the domestic market will continue to face slight downward pressure, and the trading situation may not recover as expected.

 Construction steel market:

Despite VAS announcing a price increase, Hoa Phat and other factories have not followed suit. The key factor is still reduced consumption. After two weeks, the consumption of construction steel in April 2022 has shown a clear downward trend compared to March. To ease the difficulties in the domestic market, factories have increased exports, but not as expected. Merchant prices are stagnant and slightly decreasing in some specific transactions. Next week, the pressure on consumption will be even greater.

 Pipe and box steel market:

The price increase has slowed down with only a few brands adjusting. In the coming week, some factories will increase prices slightly. Looking at the whole month of April, the upward price trend of factories will decrease significantly, with only two price increases per month, or even just one per month.

 Source: giathepton.com