Research

Forecasts and market analysis based on price assessments from Fastmarkets MB and Fastmarkets AMM

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April 2009 | Galvanized Steel and Tinplate Market Tracker


Chinese economy still lagging: Asian Market Highlights


Despite plans by mills to slash production, oversupply remains a concern

China’s coated coil producers remain under pressure in April as prices decline. Although China’s industrial output rose by 8.3% year-on-year in March – a rise of 3.8% over January and February figures – it is still doubtful whether the country’s economy has turned the corner. More job losses have been announced over the last month and private sector investment is still weak. Moreover, the risk of oversupply in coated coil markets remains undiminished as mills have yet to cut their output significantly.

Prices continue to slip...

There has been no change in market sentiment. We are hearing of fewer transactions and understand that steel mills have upped the volumes they have been offering through the spot market. Perhaps the only consolation is that while prices are slipping, the rate at which they are falling appears to be slowing down. Offers for 1mm...

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