Japan’s Steel Sheet Market Price to Hit the Bottom

The domestic steel sheet market is hitting the bottom because the overseas market prices rise, steel sheet supply and demand became tight, and the domestic distributors’ hikes are starting. The distributors think that they will find out propitious time for the market price increasing as they keep the-r selling attitudes to take the profits as the first priority though they don’t know the time that the stock adjustment is completed.Overseas steel sheet makers are advancing hikes of their selling prices of the products one by one. Japanese blast furnace steel manufacturers are increasing the export prices. As for the domestic supply and demand, the stock of the 3 types of steel sheets of hot rolled, cold rolled and surface treated steel sheets is in the high level at 4.4 million tonnes at the end of January in Japan. Some distributors said that the inventory adjustment is under way though others prospected that those steel sheets’ inventories become in the appropriate level in June. Some surface treated steel sheets processing center said that the import steel sheet price is cheaper than domestic steel sheets made by the blast furnace steel manufacturers. However, it is likely that the import volume will decrease after April. The hot rolled steel sheet market price is 65,000 yen per tonne; the cold rolled steel sheet market price is 80,000 yen per tonne; the electrogalvanized steel sheet market price is 90,000 yen per tonne; each of them is in the minimum level, conglutinating in the bottom.Domestic blast furnace steel makers continue to maintain the selling prices. Some coil center said that his center paid little in the present market price in relation to the sales for the distributors. Consequently, each distributor needs the hike for ensuring of the profit since they have the risk awareness for the income reduction.