Upstream steel mills in Taiwan announced flat rates for July, and downstream and midstream factories share a similar outlook on the current market situation.
At present, market inventories remain high and actual demand is sluggish. However, industry players are concerned that steel mills’ weighing operational performance and remaining expectations regarding order intake might undermine the stability of trading prices.
Market participants mentioned that mounting destocking pressure among local distributors is leading to speculation that upstream mills may adjust actual ex-factory prices to align with the current price trend.
On the other hand, some industry players consider that since actual demand has yet to materialize, indiscriminate price cuts would merely weaken the price trend without helping to digest inventory or improve sales performance.