China ferrous futures, steel rebar drop

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BEIJING- China’s ferrous futures dropped on Thursday, with steel rebar falling the most, as government controls on steelmaking raw materials weighed on prices of steel products.

The most-traded steel rebar on the Shanghai Futures Exchange, used in the construction sector, fell as much as 2.5 percent to 4,654 yuan ($736.77) per ton in morning trade.

The country’s state planner on Wednesday asked ports and iron ore traders to avoid “excessive hoarding” of the ingredient. It also found irregularities in some coal price indexes and urged related consultancies to rectify that as soon as possible.

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“Recent regulatory adjustments on ore and coal prices are relatively frequent, the policy risks have not been fully released,” analysts with Haitong Futures wrote in a note.

Hot rolled coils futures on the Shanghai bourse, for May delivery, slipped 1.5 percent to 4,824 yuan a ton.

China’s housing minister pledged to keep the real estate market stable this year and ensure genuine demand for homes is met.

Haitong Futures said it expects steel prices to fluctuate amid demand optimism following easing property market woes and raw material curbs.

Benchmark iron ore futures on the Dalian Commodity Exchange were traded within a tight range and dipped 0.5 percent to 697 yuan a ton.

Spot prices of iron ore with 62 percent iron content for delivery to China fell $1 to $140.5 a ton on Wednesday, data compiled by SteelHome consultancy showed.

Dalian coking coal futures fell 1.4 percent to 2,611 yuan a ton and coke prices faltered 1.5 percent to 3,363 yuan per ton.

Shanghai stainless steel futures edged down 0.4 percent to 18,360 yuan a ton. — Reuters

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