The national lockdown imposed in Bangladesh is likely to be lifted on July 14. Steel mills thus showed a willingness to book imported ferrous scrap. A shortage of domestic scrap due to a decline in demolition could also boost imports ahead of the Eid holidays.
But eased restrictions could last only until July 23, as the cabinet has issued a gazette notification which imposes another stringent lockdown for two weeks starting July 23. During the lockdown, all government, non-government and autonomous organizations will remain closed. Operation of all vehicles, including public transport (river, rail, and road), and domestic flights, will be suspended.
The daily Davis Index for containerized shredded on Tuesday settled unchanged at $555/mt cfr Chattogram. Deals were scarce due to w wide gap between offers and bids. A couple of bulk trades were reported at prices lower by $8-10/mt than previous deals in Turkey.
Amid sluggish steel sales, small mills are facing a tight margin and hoping for a drop in imported scrap prices.
The daily Davis Index for HMS 1&2 (80:20) from Latin America, Tuesday, rose to $520/mt cfr Chattogram, up by $3/mt. Deals for HMS 1&2 (80:20) were reported at $518-520/mt cfr Chattogram. Consequently, traders hiked asking prices by $5-10/mt.
Deals for UAE-origin HMS have increased in Bangladesh for the past couple of months. Mills booked material from UAE due to its quick delivery as compared to those from the UK or Europe. Sales of UAE-origin #1 HMS and P&S mix material were reported at $538-540/mt cfr Chattogram.
Following elevated offers, the daily indexes for US-origin and Australia-origin containerized HMS 1&2 (80:20) on Tuesday settled at $532.5/mt and $528/mt cfr Chattogram, respectively. The daily index for UK-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $520/mt cfr Chattogram on Tuesday.
The domestic steel market has remained unchanged. Offers for ship scrap equivalent to P&S settled at BDT49,500-50,000/mt ex-yards. Rebar trades are yet to recover. Billet and rebar prices remained at BDT59,500-60,000/mt and BDT71,500-72,000/mt ex works.
For shipbreakers, offers of scrapped vessels remained at $580-600/ldt levels. Thus, shipbreaking scrap prices also gained. Ship plate offers were at BDT55,000/mt ex-yards.
($1=BDT84.83)