Tokyo Steel has raised its domestic finished flat steel sales prices by JPY3,000-5,000/mt ($28-46/mt) for April shipments. The company hiked prices for flat steel on March 22 following a rise in global prices. The company, however, decided to keep the prices for other products unchanged since March shipments.
The company has increased prices for flat steel after keeping them unchanged for three months.
The company raised prices for coils, including hot-rolled coils (HRC), checkered coils, pickled and oiled coils, and hot-dip galvanizing coils by JPY5,000/mt to JPY90,000/mt ex-works. Rebar prices were kept unchanged at JPY73,000/mt ex-works.
April shipment prices
| Products | Prices in JPY/mt | Change M-o-M |
| H Beams | 101,000 | 0 |
| Striped H steel | 103,000 | 0 |
| I shaped steel | 100,000 | 0 |
| Channel steel | 89,000 | 0 |
| HRC | 90,000 | 5,000 |
| D bar | 73,000 | 0 |
Elevated electricity charges and firm imported scrap prices have narrowed margins for many EAF-based mills in Japan. Additionally, increased steel consumption in the domestic market has also aided the price hike for April shipments. Chinese raw material prices fluctuated amid Tangshan levying production curbs to control pollution has impacted the global sentiment.
The prices for H-shaped beams and U-shaped steel sheet piles are at JPY101,000/mt ($956/mt) and JPY105,000/mt ($994/mt) ex-works, respectively.
In the Asian markets, Tokyo Steel’s prices are followed by others, including Posco, Hyundai, Baoshan, JSW steel, and Formosa.
Five price cuts for ferrous scrap in March
Tokyo Steel announced five price cuts for ferrous scrap purchases in March on slow demand and rising supply.
After the recent price cut effective March 23, the steelmaker reduced bids by JPY500/mt ($5/mt) for all the grades at Tahara and Utsunomiya works.
Revised bids for domestic #2 HMS were at JPY41,000/mt ($377/mt) delivered Tahara, JPY40,500/mt delivered Okayama, JPY41,000/mt delivered Kyushu, JPY40,500/mt delivered Utsunomiya, and JPY39,500/mt delivered Takamatsu.
($1=JPY108.7)