PRICING NOTICE: Amendment to frequency of China import steel billet assessment

After a one-month consultation period, Fastmarkets will amend the timing specifications for its assessment of the China import steel billet price from Tuesday September 28.

The frequency of the assessments, which are currently weekly, will move to a twice-weekly basis after the next assessment date on Friday September 24.

The change would have been due to take place on Tuesday September 21, as per the last pricing notice on this subject, but no cfr China steel prices were published on September 21 due to a public holiday in China.

Modifying the frequency of the price is due to the rise in demand from subscribers for this price, together with a rise in volumes imported to China over recent months due to government-led steel output cuts at many of the country’s steel mills.

Following the amendment, the full specifications will be as follows:

MB-STE-0890: Steel billet, import, cfr China, $/tonne

Quality: 120x120mm to 150x150mm, length 12m, 3sp grade
Quantity: 5,000-50,000 tonnes
Origin: All origins excluding Iran
Location: cfr eastern China ports (normalized for other mainland Chinese sea ports)
Timing: 4-8 weeks
Unit: $ per tonne
Payment terms: Letter of credit on sight
Publication: Weekly, Tuesday and Friday, 5pm-6pm Shanghai time

The amendment will take effect from Tuesday September 28.

To provide feedback on this price assessment, or if you would like to provide price information by becoming a data submitter to this price, please contact Lee Allen by email at: pricing@fastmarkets.com. Please add the subject heading ‘FAO: Lee Allen re: China steel billet price.’

To see all Fastmarkets’ pricing methodology and specification documents go to: www.fastmarkets.com/about-us/methodology