SunSirs: Stainless Steel Prices Edged Down Last Week (August 17-21)

According to price monitoring by SunSirs, stainless steel prices have recently seen a slight decline. As of August 21, the daily average spot price for 304/2B stainless steel sheets (specifications: 1.0 x 1219 x 2438 mm; 0.91 mm tolerance) stood at 13,225 RMB/ton, down 0.38% from the beginning of the week but up 8.4% year-on-year.

According to the price spread analysis tool from SunSirs, nickel and stainless steel prices have followed similar trends, recently experiencing a slight pullback.

Total stainless steel inventories stood at 1.11 million tonnes last week, up 0.4% from the previous week, with increases in both cold-rolled and hot-rolled stocks.

Raw Materials: Trends in the raw material sector diverged last week. Nickel pig iron (NPI) prices retreated slightly; the ex-factory price for 7%-10% grade NPI in Shandong was quoted at 1,140 yuan per nickel unit, down 10 RMB/ton, from the week prior to last, resulting in a slight decrease in production costs for 304 stainless steel. Conversely, ferromolybdenum prices rose by 5,000 RMB/ton, driving a continued increase in costs for molybdenum-bearing steel grades, while ferrochrome prices remained flat. News regarding Indonesian RKAB nickel ore quotas caused repeated market fluctuations, leaving uncertainty as to whether expectations of tightening ore supplies have been dispelled. Overall, although NPI prices have softened, they have not collapsed significantly, and raw material costs continue to provide a degree of price support for stainless steel.

Supply: Upward pressure on the supply side persists. Survey data indicates that major domestic stainless steel producers scheduled a crude steel output of 3.6888 million tonnes for August, marking increases of 3.11% month-on-month and 11.26% year-on-year; within this total, the 300-series accounted for 1.9755 million tonnes, up 7.41% month-on-month. With production lines previously under maintenance resuming operations, steel mill supplies continue to flow into the circulation market. Scheduled domestic production of cold-rolled stainless steel for August stood at 1.4401 million tonnes. Although intermittent typhoon weather briefly hindered port unloading and logistics transfers, this caused only a timing delay and did not alter the reality of abundant supply.

Demand: Demand remained sluggish last week. As the market is still in the traditional off-season for consumption, downstream procurement is largely limited to low-priced restocking for immediate needs, with no substantive improvement in overall demand. Although the traditional "Golden September and Silver October" peak season is approaching, end-users show little inclination to stock up early; market activity is dominated by hand-to-mouth purchasing based on immediate needs and sporadic, short-lived spikes in transactions, lacking the support of sustained, large-scale restocking. Orders for real estate-related products—such as interior decoration materials and elevator components—remain weak, while the home appliance sector exhibits structural divergence, with only select product categories showing resilience. Most processing enterprises continue to purchase strictly according to immediate needs, refraining from active inventory accumulation and maintaining a cautious approach to procurement.

Demand: Demand remained sluggish last week. The market is currently in the traditional off-season for consumption; downstream procurement is largely limited to essential, low-price restocking. While the price of raw material nickel-iron has softened slightly, cost support remains. On the supply side, rising production schedules are exacerbating inventory accumulation pressure, while the off-season demand slump persists and the anticipated "peak season" ramp-up has fallen short of expectations. The market is at a critical juncture, transitioning from the tail end of the off-season toward the traditional peak season. In the short term, while raw material prices have not yet eased significantly—maintaining a floor for costs—high inventory levels and weak demand are capping upside potential. Stainless steel prices are expected to fluctuate within a range next week; key factors to watch include steel mills' September production plans, the pace of inventory destocking, and whether downstream stocking for the "Golden September, Silver October" peak season actually kicks off. There has been no substantial improvement in demand. Although the traditional "Golden September, Silver October" peak season is approaching, end-user sentiment regarding early stocking remains subdued; trading is characterized primarily by hand-to-mouth purchasing for essential needs and sporadic spikes in volume, lacking the support of sustained, concentrated restocking. Orders for real estate-related decorative materials and elevator components remain weak, while the home appliance sector shows structural divergence, with resilience seen in only a few product categories. Most processing enterprises are sticking to a hand-to-mouth purchasing strategy, avoiding active stockpiling and maintaining a cautious approach to procurement.

SunSirs has been continuously tracking price data for over 200 commodities for nearly 20 years, please contact support@sunsirs.com for subscription.