Market Price Edges Lower for Steel Wire Rod Products in Osaka

The shipment keeps stagnant in Osaka of steel wire rod products even entering the demand season at the end March, the end of fiscal year. The market price edges lower due to the constant arrival of cheaper wire rod products from overseas such as China. The market price is 135,000 yen per tonne for no.8 steel wire with 4 millimeters diameter and 95,000 yen per tonne for no.8 annealed low-carbon steel wire with 4 millimeters diameter.The freight movement is inactive including low-carbon steel wires with the decrease of civil engineering demand due to the reduction of public investment in Japan. Additionally some of secondary concrete product makers, the main user of steel wire rod products, became bankrupt recently and the steel wire rod shipment is seriously impacted.The wire rod processors aim to sustain the price level in order to improve their profit deterioration. However, the import of steel wire rod products has increased in a year mainly from China in both volume and variety. Especially the nail import ratio has increased year by year in the market when the end users strongly demand low-price nails.There are just small lot orders for wire rod products at wholesalers. The end distributors, such as hardware houses, also reduce their stocks and purchase the products just as much as the immediate demand. The market price is likely to weaken for the time being.