Taiwan: Feng Hsin raises rebar prices, increases scrap purchase rates

• US-origin HMS reaches $345/t CFR Taiwan
• No fresh offers for Japan-origin H2 scrap

Mysteel Global: Feng Hsin Steel, Taiwan’s largest rebar producer headquartered in Taichung in central Taiwan, has decided to raise its rebar list prices and buying prices of local scrap for transactions over 30 March-2 April in response to the continuous growth in global scrap prices, a company official confirmed on Monday.

This week is a short working week in Taiwan due to the public holiday over 3-6 April for the Qingming Festival and Children’s Day, Mysteel Global noted.

With the latest price adjustment, the Taiwanese mini-mill is offering its 13mm-diameter rebar at TWD 18,500/tonne (t) ($576/t) EXW for business negotiations till this Thursday, rising for the fifth straight week by TWD 200/t ($6/t) on week, while its buying price for local HMS 80:20 scrap stands at TWD 9,600/t ($299/t), also for an on-week rise of TWD 200/t ($6/t), according to the official.

Feng Hsin’s decision to raise its buying prices was mainly to reflect higher production costs, as prices of global scrap delivered to Taiwan have steadily moved up.

As of 30 March, the price of US-sourced HMS 80:20 scrap continued the uptrend the grade has been experiencing since the start of this year to reach $345/t CFR Taiwan, rising by $5/t on week and marking a new high since mid-August 2024. There was no quotation for Japan-origin H2 scrap, according to a local market source in Taiwan.

On the other hand, rebar prices in the Chinese mainland have lost ground recently, as demand from end-users is not proving as strong as expected this month which is traditionally a good month for steel consumption. Meanwhile, the relatively high inventories held by both Chinese steel mills and traders have also put some pressure on local rebar prices, Mysteel Global learned.

As of 27 March, China’s national price of HRB400E 20mm rebar-an indicator of the country’s domestic steel-market sentiment-was assessed by Mysteel at RMB 3,324/t ($481/t) including 13% VAT, slipping by RMB 5/t ($1/t) from one week earlier.

Note: This article has been written in accordance with a content exchange agreement between Mysteel Global and BigMint.