Tokyo Steel Manufacturing Co Ltd , Japan’s top electric-arc furnace steelmaker, said on Monday it will freeze product prices in March after three months of hikes reflecting tight markets as well as rising transportation costs.

“The domestic market remains solid with healthy demand from automobile and construction segments,” Tokyo Steel’s Managing Director, Kiyoshi Imamura, told reporters at a briefing. “But we want to hold our prices steady for now to make sure our hikes over the past three months have been absorbed by the market.”

Tokyo Steel’s pricing strategy is closely watched by Asian rivals such as South Korea’s Posco and Hyundai Steel Co, as well as China’s Baoshan Iron & Steel Co Ltd(Baosteel).

Source: reuters.com