Davis Index’s weekly north and south UK HMS 1&2 (80:20) ferrous scrap indices were unchanged at £182/mt ($243/mt), respectively, delivered dockside, on Tuesday.
UK dockside purchase prices remained surprisingly flat over the past week, despite a surge in benchmarks on major seaborne trade routes, particularly to Turkey.
Turkish HMS 1&2 (80:20) ferrous scrap import prices have jumped by $20/mt over the past weeks to $337.68/mt on Nov 23.
Some local merchant suppliers expressed their consternation that bulk UK scrap processors had been able to suppress dockside purchase prices given the strength in export tags.
One UK-based trader hypothesised that some merchants were liquidating stocks ahead of Christmas to improve cashflow and material was flowing in faster than could be sold.
British ferrous scrap traders noted that benchmarks had remained unchanged this week, though most fully expect a large price hike in the next few working days.
The weekly indexes for north and south UK OA (Plate & Structural) were unchanged over the same period at £204/mt, respectively, delivered dockside on Nov 24.
Davis’ north and south UK 5A/5C (frag feed) ferrous scrap indexes were flat at £108/mt, respectively, delivered dockside over the past week.
(£1 = $1.33)