The Turkish steel mills went quiet in the deep-sea scrap markets on Wednesday May 8 due to low demand for finished steel and the country's worsening political situation, sources told Fastmarkets.The most recent cargo booking in the deep-sea trade was on May 7. A steel mill in the Iskenderun region booked a US cargo, comprising 23,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $300 per tonne and 5,000 tonnes of...Read More
Key data from the Wednesday May 8 pricing session in Europe. Key drivers The European ferro-titanium price was stable week on week, extending a steady trend for the fourth pricing session in a row.Scrap markets have been steady for the third consecutive week. Alloy supply worries are supporting prices despite low key trading activity in the week to Wednesday. Market sentiment is being...Read More
United States-origin bulk ferrous scrap is undercutting Japanese H2 heavy scrap in the Asian spot markets despite stable demand from buyers in recent weeks.Significant price drops in the US domestic market have led to a fall in export offers from the US West Coast, leading to lower bids from buyers in Asia. VietnamHeavy melting scrap 1&2 (80:20) was being offered at...Read More
Demand for flat steel in Turkey failed to improve in April, with most prices moving downward and with demand unlikely to improve significantly this month, market participants told Fastmarkets on Wednesday May 8.Local producers have filled their order books until late June, they added.The price decreases in April were because of the weak demand in both the local and export markets.Mayoral elections...Read More
China's hot-rolled coil prices weakened on Wednesday May 8 amid persistently thin trading.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 4,060-4,070 yuan ($599-601) per tonne, down 10-20 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tianjin): 3,920-3,950 yuan per tonne, widening downward by 20 yuan per tonneMarket participants said mills lowered their offers during the day in response to recent days' sluggish buying.But this...Read More
Lack of demand and trading activity combined this week to put new pressure on CIS long steel export prices.The situation was aggravated by increased competition with Turkish suppliers trying to overcome difficulties related to protectionism in Europe and the United States and a weakening domestic economy. "We are about to finalize a rebar sale at $460 per tonne fob Black Sea," a Ukr...Read More
Import volumes of flat and long steel products into Brazil moved in opposite directions in April, according to figures released recently by the country's economy ministry.Imports of flat steel products fell by 25.70% year-on-year in April, to 97,534 tonnes, compared with 131,265 tonnes in April 2018.The decrease was mainly due to reduced imports of heavy plate, partially offset by higher volumes o...Read More
Prices for mesh-quality wire rod in Europe were stable this week amid limited market activity, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday May 8.Fastmarkets' assessment of the domestic mesh-quality wire rod price in Southern Europe was ?,?525-550 ($588-616) per tonne on May 8, unchanged for the past three weeks.The price has stayed within the range of ?,?525-560 per tonne since July 4 last year. But des...Read More
The Turkish steel mills went quiet in the deep-sea scrap markets on Wednesday May 8 due to low demand for finished steel and the country's worsening political situation, sources told Fastmarkets.The most recent cargo booking in the deep-sea trade was on May 7. A steel mill in the Iskenderun region booked a US cargo, comprising 23,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $300 per tonne and 5,000 tonnes of...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices fell back on Wednesday May 8, following a downturn in both the futures and steel markets.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $95.57 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.58 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $94.25 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.58 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $98.29 per tonne cfr Qingdao, down $0.57 per tonne. MB 58% Fe Premium Index: $86....Read More
United States-origin bulk ferrous scrap is undercutting Japanese H2 heavy scrap in the Asian spot markets despite stable demand from buyers in recent weeks.Significant price drops in the US domestic market have led to a fall in export offers from the US West Coast, leading to lower bids from buyers in Asia. VietnamHeavy melting scrap 1&2 (80:20) was being offered at...Read More
Fastmarkets published its CIS export billet index later than scheduled on Wednesday May 8 but it is now appearing as normal.Fastmarkets' CIS export billet index, fob Black Sea, was published in the price book later...Read More
Iranian export prices for steel slab and billet have decreased over the past week with deals agreed at lower values, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday May 8.Recent bookings for Iran-origin steel billet were heard done in Asia at $380-385 per tonne fob. The total volume of these exports was more than 40,000 tonnes.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for Iranian...Read More
Demand for flat steel in Turkey failed to improve in April, with most prices moving downward and with demand unlikely to improve significantly this month, market participants told Fastmarkets on Wednesday May 8.Local producers have filled their order books until late June, they added.The price decreases in April were because of the weak demand in both the local and export markets.Mayoral elections...Read More
Key data from the Wednesday May 8 pricing session in Europe. Key drivers The European ferro-titanium price was stable week on week, extending a steady trend for the fourth pricing session in a row.Scrap markets have been steady for the third consecutive week. Alloy supply worries are supporting prices despite low key trading activity in the week to Wednesday. Market sentiment is being...Read More
Import prices for stainless steel in East Asia fell over the week ending on May 7 amid a downturn in the London Metal Exchange nickel price and limited buying interest.The LME three-month nickel contract ended the official trading session at $12,040-12,050 per tonne on May 7, down by $400 per tonne from the close on May 1. The LME nickel price hit a 2019 peak of $13,650-13,660 per tonne on March 6...Read More
Domestic prices for hollow steel sections in Northern Europe moved down this week as feedstock costs continued to fall and demand remained limited, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday May 8.Fastmarkets' domestic price assessment for commodity-size, grade-S235 square hollow sections made in Northern Europe moved down to ?,?610-630 ($683-705) per tonne delivered on Wednesday, from ?,?620-630 per t...Read More
Outokumpu expects higher quarter-on-quarter earnings in April-June 2019, with "no significant changes" anticipated in the stainless steel market's dynamics, it said on Tuesday May 7.The Finnish stainless steelmaker expects its stainless steel deliveries for the second quarter to remain at a similar level to the 621,000 tonnes delivered in the first quarter of 2019. This was down from 644,000 tonne...Read More
Turkey imported 461,048 tonnes of flat steel in March 2019, down by 32.4% from the corresponding month in 2018, when 682,071 tonnes arrived in the country, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK).The country's total flat steel imports in January-March 2019 totaled 1,460,106 tonnes, 22.11% less than the 1,874,458 tonnes imported in the same period of 2018, due to the country's weak do...Read More
European wire rod producers are to call on the European Union to review its import safeguard quota for non-alloy and alloy wire rod products, they said this week."Since the imposition of safeguard measures by the European Commission (EC), non-integrated wire rod processors have seen certain quotas vanish at an unprecedented pace," the European Non-Integrated Wire Rod Processors Association (E...Read More