Angle and Channel Steel Price Keeps Flat in Tokyo

The market price of equal angle steel is around 70,000 yen per tonne for products with 6 millimeters of thickness and 50 mm of width at dealers’ sites without freight in Tokyo. Channel steel is around 75,000 yen for products with 5 mm of thickness and 50 x 100 mm of width. The demand is weak with some small lot orders. The market price is likely to maintain flat under the low level distributors’ inventory with some stock out sizes.With the reduced public investment, the construction steel demand doesn’t increase toward end of fiscal year to March as recent years. The demand from private sector apparently peaked out before the end of fiscal year. The dealers’ monthly sales of equal angle steel increased by 2.9% to 10,485 tonnes and channel steel decreased by 1% to 7,204 tonnes around Tokyo in February from January, according to Tokyo Steel Product Dealers Association. The demand was weak in general when the business days were fewer than January and the sales volume included transaction between dealers. The dealers said the demand level is in line with February. The distributors try to keep the selling price waiting demand recovery.