Imported scrap trades in Bangladesh were slow on Wednesday as most medium-scale mills decided to hold purchases after domestic steel prices lost steam and they were unable to sell finished steel at high prices. Supply from shipbreaking activities has been restored though a global shortage of containers had resulted in the cancellation of some earlier confirmed deals. Market was closed on Wednesday on as the country observed Victory Day.
The daily Davis Index for containerized shredded, Wednesday, settled at $440/mt cfr Chattogram, up by $0.62/mt. Containerized offers from the UK and US mills are scarce while a few are targeting $445-450/mt cfr Chattogram. Bids for Australia and Latin American shredded scrap were at $430-435/mt cfr Chattogram on Wednesday.
In the bulk market, offers for shredded from the US west coast crossed $460-470/mt cfr Chattogram mark amid continued bulk trades in Turkey at rising prices. Bulk offers have turned unrealistic for large scale buyers. Many construction projects have paused temporarily amid cash issues again.
The Davis Index for containerized US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $424.29/cfr Chattogram, up by $3.93/mt from Tuesday. Very few offers were at $425-430/mt cfr Chattogram from Australia on Wednesday. Some trades for mixed HMS scrap in containers from Australia, New Zealand, and Chile were at $420-425/mt cfr Chattogram.
The daily index for Latin America-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $418/mt cfr Chattogram, up by $3/mt. Following bullish global cues and stronger domestic markets, Latin American traders are expected to sell a mix of HMS #1 and P&S at prices above $425/mt cfr Chattogram. Around 2,000mt of #1 HMS traded at $418-420/mt cfr Chattogram on Tuesday.
Domestic rebar offers stay high, demand declines
Despite high input costs, steel prices started declining in some regions as mills offered discounts. On Wednesday, large-scale rebar makers kept their base asking prices at BDT62,000-64,000/mt ex-works to keep the spread between scrap and rebar stable.
After lowering rebar prices by BDT1,000-2,000/mt on Tuesday, medium and small-scale rebar makers focused on sales on Wednesday but heavy winter fog is likely to impact transportation.
Steel mills in Chattogram, Wednesday, offered domestic billets at BDT46,000-47,000/mt ($543-555/mt) ex-works Chattogram, stable from Tuesday. Market sentiments in Bangladesh are mixed amid rising scrap supply from shipbreaking. Prices lost about BDT3,000-3,500/mt ($35-40/mt) from late last week to BDT37,000/mt ex-yards. Plate prices are at BDT42,000/mt ex-yards.
For shipbreakers, offers remained in the range $420-430/ldt for tankers and containers despite a sharp rise in melting scrap offers. Most buyers were cautious at such high levels as steel demand in the beginning of next year is uncertain.
($1= BDT84.79)