The weekly Davis Index for north UK HMS 1&2 (80:20) and south UK HMS 1&2 (80:20) ferrous scrap respectively decreased by £8/mt ($10/mt) and £5/mt over the past week to £135/mt and £138/mt delivered dockside on March 17.
Some UK processors dropped their “gate prices” again this week in response to softening seaborne benchmarks and withdrawn bids from Spanish scrap buyers, as the COVID-19 outbreak worsened locally.
While Turkish mills need to book cargoes for melting requirements, some are delaying new orders to first assess steel product sales. Other opportunistic buyers are waiting for HMS 1&2 (80:20) offers below $260/mt cfr.
Davis Index heard rumours that UK-based Liberty Steel Newport intended to suspend operations in light of market developments. However, the company immediately refuted the rumors in a written response to Davis.
The weekly index for north and south UK OA (Plate & Structural) ferrous scrap decreased by £6/mt and £2/mt over the past week to £164/mt and £163/mt, respectively, delivered dockside.
At the same time, the weekly index for north and south UK 5A/5C (frag feed) dropped by £5/mt over the last week to £75/mt.
(£1 = $1.21)