Weekly roundup: Global ferrous scrap prices head south

Global ferrous scrap prices headed southwards this week.

• Turkey buyers resume bookings: Turkish scrap buyers recommenced their bookings towards the end of last week, after the Eid holidays. A total of two deals were finalised. Interestingly, prices dropped in recently-booked deep-sea cargoes. However, weaker finished steel prices may result in falling imported scrap prices. SteelMint’s assessment for US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) now stands at $470/tonne (t) CFR, dropping further by $10/tonne (t) w-o-w.
• Hyundai Steel cuts bids for Japanese scrap: South Korean steel major Hyundai Steel reportedly lowered bids for Japanese ferrous scrap by up to JPY 1,000/t ($9/t) against the last bid placed on 9 Jul’21. Bids for the most-preferred H2 scrap are now at JPY 47,000/t ($428/t) FoB. The bids presented are down by JPY 500/t ($4/t) against last week’s bids placed by Daehan Steel. Prices declined on the back of lower bids and decline in global prices.

• Japanese offers drop w-o-w: Japanese scrap export offers came down due to lower bids from mills. Limited deals were heard recently, owing to decline in global scrap prices. Japanese scrap prices were still unworkable for prominent buyers like Bangladesh due to lockdown restrictions on increasing Covid cases which slowed down the market.
  SteelMint’s price assessment for Japanese H2 scrap exports stood at JPY 47,000-47,500/t FoB, down by JPY 500/t compared to last week.
• Tokyo Steel’s scrap prices unchanged: Japan’s leading EAF steel mill, Tokyo Steel, kept scrap buying prices unchanged this week. The company had announced its second revision for scrap buying last week, decreasing prices by JPY 500-1,000/t ($5-9/t) for four of its steelworks, excluding the Utsunomiya plant. The company is paying a bid price of JPY 50,000/t ($455/t) for H2 scrap for the Tahara works. However, prices stayed stable for the Utsunomiya plant at JPY 49,000/t ($446/t).
• Vietnam scrap trade subdued on lower demand: Vietnam’s imported scrap trade activities slowed down due to lower domestic consumption and inadequate demand owing to Covid restrictions. High steel prices also considerably dented the country’s developmental works, delaying several major infra projects. Bulk imported scrap offers for Japanese H2 scrap were at $490-495/t CFR Vietnam, lower by $10/t w-o-w. Bids are heard at around $480/t CFR.
• Shagang scrap procurement prices untouched: China’s largest electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmaker, Jiangsu Shagang Group, changed its scrap purchase prices for Jul’21 only once. The company announced a scrap procurement price hike by RMB 80/t ($12/t) across all grades. Increased scrap deliveries and hike in semi-finished and finished steel prices led to the rise in prices. After the revision, current prices for HMS (6-10 mm) stand at RMB 3,850/t ($594/t), inclusive of 13% VAT, delivered to headquarters.
• Pakistan trading resumes post-Eid: Pakistan’s imported scrap market has gradually resumed after the Eid holidays. However, the import prices witnessed a drop since the beginning of the week. Market sentiments are bearish due to a decline in Turkey’s scrap import prices and also rainy season is impacting the market adversely. Few deals were reported throughout the week. Around 2,000 t of containerised shredded material were heard at $542-543/t CFR recently.

SteelMint’s bi-weekly assessment for shredded scrap is at $540-545/t CFR Port Qasim, down by $5-10/t compared to the price levels at the beginning of the week.

• Bangladesh market remains muted: Bangladeshi scrap markets remained silent for yet another week, owing to the extended lockdown restrictions. Likewise, domestic steel market remained dull due to the rainy season. Few offers from bulk suppliers were quoted. Nevertheless, buyers showed little interest and the bookings are likely to resume in the coming weeks as part of their seasonal buying. SteelMint’s assessment for shredded stands at $555/t, CFR Chittagong, down by $5/t w-o-w.
• India’s scrap inquiries improve: Decline in Turkey’s imported scrap prices, resulted in slight enhancement in trade inquiries in India.  Limited trade activities were witnessed though. It is expected that the imported scrap trade would get some momentum in the next two weeks. Meantime, a few market participants are waiting for prices to come down for Aug shipments.

Fresh offers for shredded are at $530-535/t CFR levels, up by $10-15/t against the start of the week. Furthermore, HMS 1&2 from the UK are being offered at $485-490/t CFR levels, while HMS 1 from the UAE is being quoted at $485-490/t CFR levels.