Weekly: Global billet market overview

The global billet market remained sluggish amid the volatile Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) rebar market. The prices witnessed a dipping trend during 24-28 May ’21. However, the prices rebound after the rebar futures market rallied on 29 May ’21. The futures market witnessed having settled at RMB 4,933/t ($775/t), up by RMB 116/t ($18/t) d-o-d. According to SteelMint sources, just after the futures market rise, an Indonesian billet cargo sold in ASEAN in the price range of $700-710/t, CFR. During conversations with marketers, we learned- “the deal is a quick move to respond to the market. It is wise to wait until the coming week to get the market stabilized.”

Russia: No substantial offerings were heard from the Russian mills amidst volatile futures. A SteelMint source said: “Russian mills are also waiting for the market to stabilise.” However, the Black Sea billet offers were at around $660/t, FoB.

India: SteelMint’s bi-weekly assessment for Indian mills’ billets (150*150mm, BF route, FoB east coast), published on 25 May ’21, was at $615-620/t, down $40 w-o-w.

• India’s billet exports market has turned silent on lowered Chinese buying indications.
• SteelMint witnessed the bid-offer disparity and limited buying interest for Indian cargoes on account of the volatile dynamics. For instance, two billet export tenders of a state-owned mill remained unsold.
• We didn’t hear substantial export offerings from private mills.
• Chinese buyers are worried about the quarantine impact on shipments from India and waiting delays, traders highlighted.

Iran: SteelMint’s bi-weekly assessment for billet export prices from Iran stands at $640-650/t, FoB Iran, down by $45/t w-o-w.

• Iranian billet export prices slipped by around $45/t in a recent deal on lower Chinese buying indications.
• Khorasan Steel Company, one of Iran’s leading steelmakers, sold 30,000 t of billets through a recent export tender, as per SteelMint reports. According to sources, the company concluded the tender at $645/t FoB Iran for July ’21 shipments.
• Another leading steel exporter had floated an export tender for 30,000 t of billets but cancelled it later due to bid-offer disparity. According to SteelMint’s sources, the tender received bids at $585-590/t FoB Iran levels.
• No domestic trade seen on IME: The Iranian Mercantile Exchange (IME) saw yet another silent week with no volumes of billets being traded. An Iranian source highlighted that active bookings in exports have kept mills away from the domestic market.

SE Asia: SteelMint’s bi-weekly assessment for imported billets in SE Asia, published on 29 May ’21 stands at $660/t CFR, down by $20-30, w-o-w.

• The South East Asian imported billets market remained bearish, influenced by the volatile Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) rebar futures. Buying indications point to a further drop in prices by $20-30/t week-on-week (w-o-w) to $660/t CFR. However, the price indications at the end of the week rose sharply and heard slightly above $700/t CFR.
• Vietnam’s billet export prices fall in recent deal: The country reportedly sold around 15,000 t of billets to the Philippines at $660/t, CFR. Blast-furnace- route billet export offers from Vietnam fell sharply to $650/t, CFR from $760/t, FoB, seen in the last week.
• Thailand’s imported billets market stable: Imported billets offers in Thailand are learned to be stable at $700/t, CFR.

China: The Chinese domestic billet prices settled at RMB 4,800/t ($754/t) on 28 May ’21, down by RMB 350/t ($55/t) on volatile SHFE rebar futures. However, on a d-o-d basis, the prices rose by around RMB 70/t ($24/t) as the future market rallied.

Global billet market snapshot: