Pakistan steelmakers have resumed operations this week after lockdown restrictions eased. Trades for imported ferrous scrap picked up on limited availability of domestic scrap. Mills holding ferrous scrap stocks in hand have already started productions. Others are likely to be in the market after the Eid holiday late this month.
Mills are facing a shortage of labour with the public transportation system still suspended. Stockpiled inventories of billets have made it to the market weighing down the prices.
The Davis Index for US-origin containerised shredded settled at $271/mt cfr Port Qasim on Friday, unchanged from the prior day, but up by $10-15/mt from the prior Friday. Europe and UK-origin shredded traded at $270-275/mt cfr Qasim, up by $10/mt.
Bulk ferrous scrap cargoes booked before the lockdown have started arriving at port Qasim which will replenish the dipping inventories with major mills in Karachi.
The Davis Index for Dubai-origin #1 HMS settled at $265/mt cfr Port Qasim, up by $10/ mt from the prior week. Offers for a mix of #1 HMS and PS were at $260-265/mt cfr Qasim. Containerised HMS 1&2 (80:20) from UAE traded at $250-255/mt cfr Qasim. This week, trades for LMS scrap were reported at $215/mt cfr Qasim. The holy Ramadan month has kept operation hours for banks limited and traders continued to struggle with their backorders.
The Davis Index for PS settled at $268/mt cfr Port Qasim, unchanged from the prior week. PS scrap from Brazil and the United Kingdom traded at $265-270/mt cfr Qasim, flat from the prior week. The index for busheling settled at $278mt cfr Port Qasim, up by $3/mt from the prior week.
Offers from South Africa and Brazil for busheling were at $280-285/mt cfr Qasim but no trades were reported. Containerised HMS 1&2 (80:20) from the UK and US was offered at $235-240/mt cfr Port Qasim, down by $5/mt from the prior week. Latin American HMS 1&2 (80:20) traded at $240-245/mt cfr Qasim, down by $5/mt from the prior week.
Pakistan’s domestic billet prices drop; rebar prices up
The weekly Davis Index for commercial Bala billet settled at PKR87,500/mt ex-yards Punjab inclusive of local taxes, down by PKR1,000/mt. Steelmakers hiked product prices as increased input costs and accumulated ports charges are hurting their pockets.
The Davis Index for G-60 billet settled at PKR93,500/mt cfr Qasim, down by PKR750/mt from the prior week.
The Davis Index for G-60 rebar settled at PKR112,500/mt ex-plant Karachi and PKR111,500/mt ex-plant Punjab, up by PKR2,000/mt from the prior week.
Domestic ferrous scrap prices in Pakistan dropped with the weekly index for Art Pure Q scrap equivalent to shredded settling at PKR 66,000/mt ex-works, down by PKR1,000/mt. Offers for domestic scrap mix of HMS and P&S were at PKR66,000/mt del mill.
($1=PKR159.84)