China's Ministry of Commerce (MOC) has announced that during last week (December 31, 2012-January 6, 2013) the average steel price in China increased by 0.3 percent compared to the previous week.
In particular, in the given week prices of 500 mm x 200mm H-beam, 10 mm steel plate and 80 mm x 43 mm x 5.0 mm steel channel increased by 0.4 percent, 0.4 percent and 0.3 percent respectively, all week on week.
In the week ending January 6, average prices of minerals in China witnessed an increase of 1.6 percent week on week. Furthermore, the average prices of iron ore in China increased by 1.9 percent week on week in the week in question, while the aggregate price increase of iron ore in the latest four weeks reached 9.3 percent.
Meanwhile, in the given week average prices of energy in China decreased by 0.1 percent week on week. The average prices of raw coal and coke in China remained unchanged compared to the previous week, while the average price of crude oil indicated a week-on-week decrease one percent.