China steel futures fall most in seven years as rout extends
Exchanges in Dalian, Shanghai and Zhengzhou have imposed curbs to rein in speculative activity
Chinese rebar steel futures posted their biggest intraday fall in seven years on Tuesday, as worries about demand in the world’s second-biggest economy extended a rout that has spilled over into other industrial raw materials.
Rebar, or reinforced steel, fell 7.6 per cent at one point, while iron ore lost as much as 6 per cent. Retail buyers rushed into China’s commodities futures in April, hoping a stabilising economy would boost demand for raw materials, lifting prices and volumes of everything from steel to cotton.
China’s main commodity exchanges in Dalian, Shanghai and Zhengzhou have since imposed measures to rein in speculative activity including higher trading fees.
Buying interest has shrunk so those steel traders who have bought cargo for speculation must now feel the pain with actual demand just so-so
The big market moves and the response of authorities have raised concerns about the risk of contagion for global markets, particularly after last year’s Chinese stock boom and bust
The exchanges’ measures along with an increase in steel supply, particularly of rebar used in construction, had helped fuel a big retreat in futures prices, said Qing Dong Qing, analyst at Shanghai Zhong Cai Futures.
“The short positions of hedge funds and futures investment funds have also suppressed ferrous metals,” Qing said.
The most-traded rebar on the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell as much as 7.6 per cent to 2,085 yuan (HK$2,481) a tonne, its weakest since March 18 and the biggest percentage drop since March 30, 2009. It closed down 4.9 per cent at 2,147 yuan.