Taiwanese steelmaker Feng Hsin Steel kept its ferrous scrap prices unchanged from the prior week as cold weather and rising COVID-19 cases has affected finished steel demand. Prices for HMS 1&2 (80:20) remained at TWD11,450/mt del South Taiwan mills. The country has also reported the first case of mutant South African COVID-19 strain, dampening the market sentiment.
The steelmaker’s also kept its base price for rebar unchanged at TWD19,300-19,400/mt($689-692/mt) ex-southern mills. Most mills lowered bids by $5-10/mt from the prior wee kto $425-428/mt as finished steel demand declined.
The Davis Index for containerized US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $435/mt, down by $5/mt from a day ago and by $16/mt cfr Taiwan from the prior Friday. Sellers kept offers unchanged at $435/mt, but buyers were unwilling to accept these levels. Offers for USWC HMS 1&2 (90:10) were heard at $438/mt cfr on Friday.
Taiwanese have decided to observe price trends in the Japanese export market and Turkey’s seaborne purchases before booking more material. There were only a few fresh offers from US exporters amid container shortages and vessel delays, others focussed on clearing delayed orders.
($1=TWD28)