Vietnam: Imported scrap bids fall further on dull demand, extended lockdown

Vietnam’s imported scrap market remained subdued on rising Covid cases in the country. However, imported bulk scrap offers remain mainly stable w-o-w. The extended lockdown has left everyone clueless on sentiments, as players stayed away from the market for the time being, mostly in the southern part of the country.

• SteelMint’s assessment for Japanese bulk H2 stands at around $470/t CFR Vietnam levels, unchanged w-o-w, while the bids are at $465/t CFR levels. However, no deal was concluded.
• No firm offers were reported for US-origin bulk HMS 1&2 (80:20). Price indications are around $505/t CFR Vietnam, unchanged for yet another week.

Vietnam’s leading steel mill, Hoa Phat, was heard to have lowered its billet export offers by around $40/tonne (t) w-o-w amid subdued domestic sales on extended lockdown restrictions due to rising Covid cases. According to reliable sources, BF-route offers are at $660-665/t CFR China (equivalent to $640/t FoB) compared with $705/t CFR China assessed a week back.

The Covid-19 epidemic with a new strain has complicated developments, negatively affecting industrial production in July and the first seven months of 2021, as per the latest report released by the Vietnam Steel Association (VSA).

Vietnam’s steel production falls 6% in Jul’21:

• Steel production reached 2.39 mn t in Jul’21, dropping 6.48 % from the previous month but is up by 13.8 % over the same month in CY’20, according to the data released by Vietnam Steel Association.
• Sales of all categories of steel reached 2.1 mn t in Jul’21, equal to the level of Jun’21, but increased by 7.4 % over Jul’20.
• Steel exports across categories reached 0.6 mn t, up by 5.96% over the previous month, and up 55% over July’20.

Market highlights of other SE Asian countries

Indonesian buyers resume scrap inquiries: Imported scrap inquiries from Indonesian scrap buyers have increased. Few deals were heard during last week. Australian-origin shredded and HMS 1 are being quoted at $510/t and $505/t CFR Jakarta levels.

Thailand imported scrap offers inch down: Imported scrap offers into Thailand inch down. Central America-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) are being offered at $420/t CFR levels, slightly lower by $5/t w-o-w. Few deals were reported in containers last week but no deals in bulk were reported.