WEEKLY SCRAP WRAP: Global prices continue to rise across all markets

Ferrous scrap prices on the global markets continued to move up during the working week ended Friday October 25, with a positive Turkish market adding to the stronger sentiment.

  • Turkish import prices continue to move up on fresh booking
  • US export prices up again on new Turkey cargoes
  • Taiwan import prices increase on continued tight supply
  • Vietnam import prices higher following global trend
  • Indian import scrap continues recovery ahead of Diwali holiday.

Turkey
Turkish mills were relatively subdued this week with only one new cargo booked, after an estimated 500,000 tonnes of material was booked earlier in October, with minimal further trades expected this month.

The daily index for steel scrap, HMS 1&2 (80:20 mix), North Europe origin, cfr Turkey, ended the week at $244.16 per tonne on October 25, up from $238.11 per tonne on October 21.

The daily index for steel scrap, HMS 1&2 (80:20), US origin, cfr Turkey, was $251.06 per tonne on Friday, up from $245.01 per tonne on Monday.

United States
Prices in the US were up by $14 per tonne in the latest US deals to Turkey reported on October 17.

One East Coast exporter sold 12,000 tonnes of a HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $244 per tonne, 8,000 tonnes of shredded at $249 per tonne and 12,000 tonnes of bonus at $254 per tonne.

A second sale to Turkey from an exporter in the south-eastern US state of Florida was reported sold, with an undisclosed amount of HMS 1&2 (90:10) fetching $246 per tonne and shredded $249 per tonne.

With these new sales, Fastmarkets’ steel scrap, HMS 1&2 (80:20), export index, fob New York, increased by $14 per tonne to $214 per tonne on October 23.

The shredded scrap, export index, fob New York, also increased by $14 per tonne to $219 per tonne.

No cargoes were sold on the US West Coast, leaving Fastmarkets’ steel scrap HMS 1&2 (80:20), export index, fob Los Angeles, unchanged at $214.50 per tonne on Wednesday.

Vietnam
Prices in Vietnam moved up this week despite limited trading.

Fastmarkets’ price assessment for bulk shipments of steel scrap, HMS 1&2 (80:20), cfr Vietnam, was $255-260 per tonne cfr on October 25, up by $5-10 per tonne from a week earlier.

Offers were heard at $260-262 per tonne for US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20).

“There were limited bids for bulk cargoes because of the thin [price] spread between scrap and billet, which has led to buyers increasing their demand for domestic billet for re-rolling, instead of melting scrap,” a buyer source at a Vietnamese steel mill said.

There was talk of a Singapore-origin cargo of HMS 1&2 (80:20) sold at $255 per tonne cfr Vietnam in the past week, although the details could not be confirmed.

In the containerized markets, a US-origin cargo of HMS 1&2 (80:20) was sold to southern Vietnam at $235 per tonne cfr this week, while a US-origin cargo of shredded scrap was sold to northern Vietnam at $265 per tonne cfr.

Offers of containerized HMS 1&2 (80:20) were heard at $239-240 per tonne cfr Vietnam.

Taiwan
Prices in Taiwan moved up for imported scrap due to sellers withholding materials for the Taiwanese market.

Fastmarkets’ daily price assessment for containerized cargoes of steel scrap, HMS 1&2 (80:20 mix), US material import, cfr main port Taiwan, was $237-238 per tonne cfr on Friday, higher by $5 per tonne than at the start of the week.

The tighter supply was caused by sellers in the US looking for more lucrative markets in Turkey, where the latest transaction was heard at $256 per tonne cfr for HMS 1&2 (90:10) on October 24.

India
Prices for scrap imported into India moved up for the third consecutive week following a spike in trading activity ahead of the upcoming Diwali holiday in the country.

Fastmarkets’ calculation of the steel scrap, shredded, index, import, cfr Nhava Sheva, India, was $268.23 per tonne on Friday, up from $261.17 per tonne one week earlier.

Deals for shredded material into India this week were heard at $268 and $270 per tonne, up from $255-265 per tonne last week.

“There is strong positive sentiment and prices should hold for a bit at these levels,” a buyer said.

With Diwali taking place this weekend, one of the biggest Indian festivals on the calendar, many expected a dip in activity from Thursday-Friday, with trading set to begin again on Wednesday next week.

“With Diwali coming up, we lost rupees on local scrap. But normally, around this time, mills will be closed for at least three days if not more, meaning demand drops. As a result, we are going to pause trading until the middle of next week,” a trader said.

“People are keen, higher price deals were done. Seasonally in December, prices will be supported. I don’t see the market going down,” he added.

“Everything is going up, the positivity is there,” a second trader said. “Next week, on Wednesday, everyone will be back to work and trading activities will start up again.”