By Shinhye Kang
June 23 (Bloomberg) -- Posco, Asia’s third-biggest steelmaker, will raise the prices of some stainless steel products on June 29 because of higher nickel costs and demand.
The price of 300-series hot-rolled coil will increase 9.8 percent to 2.8 million won ($2,180) per metric ton from 2.55 million won, Pohang, South Korea-based Posco said in an e-mailed statement today. Cold-rolled prices will gain to 3.07 million won from 2.82 million won.
Posco is reversing a reduction made just last month when weakening demand and lower material costs led it to slash prices by as much as 19 percent. Nickel, used to make stainless steel, has jumped 60 percent since March and global mills have also raised processing rates on increasing demand, it said today.
“There are also some signs of improving domestic demand,” South Korea’s largest steelmaker said. Demand for Posco’s products, cheaper than those made by rivals, is gaining on expectations of an economic recovery in the second half and rising global prices, the company said.
Cold-rolled coil prices in China have increased 17 percent in the past two months, Posco said. China is the world’s largest steel consumer.
Shares of Posco fell 3.9 percent to 405,500 won in Seoul trading as of 10:51 a.m. local time, compared with a 2.4 percent decline in the benchmark Kospi index.
To contact the reporter on this story: Shinhye Kang in Seoul at skang24@bloomberg.net.
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