Indian steel mills booked imported scrap paying a little higher prices late last week but on Monday the market was quiet as most buyers sought clarity on the global price direction. Steel mills are preferring domestic scrap which is available at a lower price and with faster delivery times. Offers were stable on Friday, however, mills hope for a drop in prices before placing new orders.
End-user demand remains a concern for most secondary mills who are still working at 50-60pc capacities. Weaker export demand than in September has also reduced scrap trades.
In Turkey, the prices for US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) were at $286-287/mt cfr Turkey. In the cargo market, a few Turkish mills managed to lower offer prices by $2-3/mt than earlier deals. Demand for rebar from Asian and African markets too remained weaker than expected which slowed bulk scrap bookings for November and December shipments.
The Davis Index for containerized shredded on Monday settled at $310.57/mt cfr Nhava Sheva, up $0.07/mt from Friday. Offers for UK-origin shredded were at $310-315/mt cfr Nhava Sheva on Monday but there was very limited buying interest in the market. Mills remained hesitant to book large volumes despite gradual recovery in production rates. There is still a lot of uncertainty looming in the global markets and most buyers are not confident of book long-duration cargoes.
The Davis Index for HMS 1&2 (80:20) from UAE, Monday, settled at $298/mt cfr Nhava Sheva, up by $2/mt from Friday. Deals for Dubai-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) were at $297-298/mt cfr Nhava Sheva. Some offers were even at $298-300/mt cfr Nhava Sheva on Friday, up by $5/mt from late last week. After witnessing a few trades for containerized #1 HMS from Dubai above $305/mt cfr Nhava Sheva, offers stayed at $305/mt cfr Nhava Sheva on Monday but bids were below $300/mt cfr Nhava Sheva.
Domestic billet prices have remained under pressure impacting ferrous scrap bookings. In the export markets, offers for billets were heard at $430-435/mt fob, equivalent to $445-450/mt cfr SE Asia while Southeast Asian buyers are looking for $440/mt cfr for billets.
In the bulk markets, offers for HMS 1&2 (80:20) were still in the range of $310-320/mt cfr Kandla, however, buyers refused to book materials at such high levels.
A few containers for the UK-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) sold at $290-295/mt cfr Nhava Sheva.
In the domestic market, prices dropped as heavy rains hit parts of India. Secondary steelmakers in India are badly hurt by slump in demand for rebar. If construction projects start restocking rebar and other structural steel products, market sentiments will improve but demand is expected to slowdown in early-November due to festival season, said a trader.
Demand for other grades of scrap picked up in India after a long pause. Inquiries for Turning scrap on Monday from supplier’s end were above $280/mt cfr Nhava Sheva. Indian mill resumed trades for premium grades like Busheling and P&S scrap. Busheling traded at $325/mt cfr Nhava Sheva while P&S scrap was traded at $310-315/mt cfr Nhava Sheva in thin volumes.
Subcontinent
Higher offers kept subcontinent indexes up. However, if the absence of trades prolongs through this week, prices could come under pressure again, said traders. The Davis Index for containerized shredded, Monday, settled at $304.82/mt cfr India subcontinent, up by $0.77/mt from Friday. The Davis Index for containerized US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $291.82/mt cfr India subcontinent, up by $2.55/mt from Friday.
($1=Rs73.32)