Feng Hsin Steel, Taiwan’s largest rebar producer headquartered in Taichung, Central Taiwan, has decided to lift its rebar list price and its buying price for locally sourced scrap by TWD 200/tonne ($6.6/t) for the week of December 9-13, given strengthening steel scrap prices in the global market, a company official confirmed on December 9.
After the latest adjustment, Feng Hsin is selling its 13mm dia rebar at TWD 15,900/t for this week after holding its price at TWD 15,700/t for each of the prior six weeks, as Mysteel Global reported. The mini-mill’s buying price for locally sourced HMS 1&2 80:20 scrap has been raised by the same amount for this week’s purchases to TWD 7,700/t, according to the company official.
“We’ve raised our scrap buying price mainly because of the steady growth in global scrap prices, which boosted market confidence (in Taiwan) and encouraged local scrap suppliers to raise their selling prices,” Feng Hsin’s official explained.
As of December 9, the price of US-sourced HMS 1&2 80:20 scrap, a key reference for Taiwan’s scrap and rebar markets, had increased for five consecutive weeks to reach $258/t CFR Taiwan, higher by another $8/t week on week or up $16/t from one month before. As of Monday, Japan-origin H2 scrap was reported at $270/t CFR Taiwan, representing a week-on-week rise of $5/t or up $18/t month, the company official told Mysteel Global.
Feng Hsin decided to lift its rebar sales price this week as the continuous climb in scrap prices had increased its production costs. But at the same time, “rebar sales performed well last week,” the official admitted.
Taiwan’s steel market has entered the traditional peak season for steel consumption, especially of construction steel, as building contractors accelerate their pace of work to complete projects ahead of Chinese New Year in late January, Mysteel Global notes. However, industry watchers in Taiwan remains cautious about the long product market for the time being, pointing out that the current rebar sales prices are still at a very low level.
This article has been published under an article exchange agreement between Mysteel Global and SteelMint Research.
Leave a Reply