Taiwan’s major upstream stainless steel manufacturers have raised their April prices across the board, with the 304 series increasing by NT$4,000/ton, reflecting the rising costs of raw materials and the pressure of the depreciation of the Taiwan dollar.
After the price increase, there is a strong wait-and-see sentiment in the downstream, mainly because international variables such as Trump’s tariff policy have affected market confidence. Although the circulation price has been adjusted up accordingly, it is expected that customers will still be cautious after the Qingming Festival holidays.
Due to the surge in imported raw materials, some steel mills evaluated the allocation quantity and prices based on customer inventory and demand. Besides, steel mills will match the order volume with the available raw materials to avoid excessive orders that lead to out-of-control costs. In particular, when domestic and foreign sales demand is unpredictable, procurement and order-taking strategies tend to be cautious.