Strong Sheet Steel Price in Tokyo

Sheet steel market mood is accelerated to increase around Tokyo after Tokyo Steel Manufacturing increased the selling price of coil and sheet products by 3,000 yen per tonne for February order. The market price could increase when the distributors started to offer higher reselling price. The sheet demand keeps firm for automobile and industrial machinery while the construction demand recovers since late 2006. The domestic inventory of hot, cold and coated sheet decreased to 3.81 million tonnes at the end of November compared with just less than normal level of 4 million tonnes in October. The distributors reported some stock out sizes due to lower inventory depending on the items and the market recognizes tighter supply. The trading firm and processors started to increase the reselling price to improve the profitability and the market price increased by 3,000-4,000 yen per tonne for hot rolled steel since late 2006. The price could increase more with maker’s hike under expectation the supply will keep tight.