South Korea, one of the largest buyers of ferrous scrap, imported 0.32 million tonnes (mnt) in July 2022 against 0.37 mnt in June, a drop of 14% m-o-m, as per SteelMint’s customs data. On a y-o-y basis too, imports were down by 26% from 0.43 mnt in Jul’21.
The decrease in imported scrap purchases indicates that buyers were partially active due to the continuous rise in imported prices. At the same time, the availability of scrap in the domestic market also contributed to lower imports.
Imports from Japan were the highest with 0.18 mnt, followed by USA and Russia with 0.08 mnt and 0.03 mnt in July.
Country-wise breakup:
- Imports from Japan down: Japan continued to be the largest exporter of ferrous scrap to South Korea at 0.18 mnt in July. However, import volumes from Japan declined by 14% as compared to 0.21 mnt in June 2022. Steelmakers’ increased preference for domestic material due to lower prices weighed on demand for imported material.
- Imports from USA down: South Korea’s scrap import volumes from the USA dropped 33% to 0.08 mnt in July as against 0.12 mnt in June.
- Imports from Russia rise over 2-folds: Interestingly, imports from Russia rose by over 2-folds to 0.03 mnt in July from 0.01 mnt in June.
Outlook
South Korea’s scrap imports will continue to remain on the lower side due to the increased availability of domestic material.
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