RUSSIA REBAR: Prices keep rising on renewed construction activity

Fastmarkets’ price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, cpt Moscow, Russia, was 53,000-54,000 roubles ($699-712) per tonne, including 20% value-added tax, on March 29. This was up by 1,000-2,000 roubles per tonne from 51,000-53,000 roubles per tonne on March 22.

Trading activity in the region was recovering steadily, supported by seasonal improvement in the key end-user sector – construction, sources said.

Sources also noted that stock levels at traders were generally low.

Construction activity in Russia, the main market for rebar, typically slows in late autumn and early winter due to poor weather conditions and starts to recover again in late March.

Novolipetsk Steel (NLMK) has announced new offer prices for April at 54,000 roubles per tonne, which was above the market’s expectations of 52,000-53,000 roubles per tonne. It was also up from the 50,000 roubles per tonne offer for March volumes.

“NLMK is the only mill that is selling rebar to traders,” one source said. “Others work with end-users directly through their trading offices.”

Market sources also said that there were still no rebar offers to traders from Tula Steel, but they had heard offers from the company’s trade division to end-users at 53,000 roubles per tonne.

In the secondary market, rebar was heard offered by large traders at 58,000-59,000 roubles per tonne.

Market sources were not ruling out new rebar price increases in April because of good demand and restocking activity.