FOB China HRC
There is no index yesterday given Singapore holiday.
China exported 5.669mn t of steel products in July 2021, up by 35.8pc on year. Its January-July export volume increased by 30.9pc on year to 43.051mn t, while the import volume for steel products fell by 59.7pc in July to 1.049mn t. China’s excavator sales in July 2021 went down by 9.24pc on year to 17,345 units, while the January-July sales still increased by 27.2pc on year, data from China Construction Machinery Association shows.
Market talk has intensified over the possibility Beijing imposing a 10-15pc export tariff on coils from 15 August. No official confirmation was available but market participants are more cautious. Offers were unchanged at $910-935/t cfr Vietnam for SAE1006 grade coils from Russia and India, inducing bids at $915-920/t cfr Vietnam at most. (Argus)
Turkish Scrap
Further deals booked over week ended Aug. 6 heard
Market awaits Turkish Central Bank interest rate decision
Turkish Deepsea import ferrous scrap prices inched down Aug. 9, as sell-side sources cited lower workable levels, sources said.
S&P Global Platts assessed Turkish imports of premium heavy melting scrap 1/2 (80:20) Aug. 9 at $459/mt CFR, down $3.50/mt day on day.
“In August, I see a bit more softening,” an EU recycler said, citing an indicative tradable value for premium HMS 1/2 (80:20) at $460/mt CFR. “Dock prices for HMS are at Eur330-340/mt delivered, but scrap inflow is low, as all subsuppliers are focused on selling to the domestic market [where prices are higher].”
An EU trader said $458-$460/mt CFR maximum was workable for premium HMS 1/2 (80:20), with reported sales for EU-origin HMS 1/2 (80:20) cited as low as $450/mt CFR, but these could not be confirmed.
A Turkish agent said $450-$460/mt CFR was workable for premium HMS 1/2 (80:20), adding, “I don’t think we have reached the bottom.”
A Turkish mill source said $455-$460/mt was workable for premium HMS 1/2 (80:20), while a second trading source cited an indicative tradable value for premium HMS 1/2 (80:20) in the low $460s/mt CFR. (Argus)
EU HRC
European coil remained in holiday mood today, with many participants away and trade very illiquid.
The Argus daily Italian hot-rolled coil (HRC) index fell by €2.50/t to €1043.25/t ex-works, while the daily northwest EU HRC index was static at €1,140.50/t.
Market participants continue to track developments in China. If an export duty is introduced — as chatter has suggested it could be in the next week — this would lift regional Asian steel pricing, which would filter into higher import offers into Europe.
Import offers have been the primary driver of lower Italian flat steel prices this summer, with the gap in some instances over €100/t, which means steel service centres stocked up well with lower-priced material from abroad. This has allowed some of them to be more competitive with offers for processed coils, which has put pressure on the downstream market, and prices have subsequently fallen significantly from the highs seen a couple of months ago.
The decrease in processed prices has resulted in end users being more cautious about buying, with many postponing purchases until September. In turn, this has forced mills to lower HRC prices to attract orders before the holidays to fill their books. October availability means that in September lead times should be back closer to the usual historical delivery length — extended lead times is another factor that kept EU prices strong in the first half of the year.
In the north, several market sources reported one large mill selling coil into the US recently, with a relatively prompt shipment date and lead time. This could run counter to the narrative that producers are well booked and in no rush to sell. At the same time, there have been several production issues at northern mills, further impacting their already poor delivery performance. For this reason, some think tightness might intensify once the market restarts after summer. (Argus)
| Indices | Price | Change | MTD |
| Platts TSI HMS 1/2 80:20 CFR Turkey ($/mt) | 459.00 | -3.50 | 484.83 |
| Steel Rebar FOB Turkey ($/mt) | 697.50 | -2.50 | 720.57 |
| Argus HRC NW Europe (€/mt) | 1140.50 | 0.00 | 1165.08 |
| Argus FOB China HRC ($/mt) | SING HOL | 0.00 | 904.62 |
| LME HRC FOB TIANJIN CHINA USD/mt | LME HMS 80:20 CFR TK | |||||||
| Bid | Ask | Value | Bid | Ask | Value | |||
| Aug-21 | 930 | 940 | 935 | Aug-21 | 459 | 469 | 464 | |
| Sep-21 | 937 | 947 | 942 | Sep-21 | 470 | 480 | 475 | |
| Oct-21 | 935 | 945 | 940 | Oct-21 | 475 | 485 | 480 | |
| Nov-21 | 938 | 948 | 943 | Nov-21 | 473 | 483 | 478 | |
| Q4-21 | 938 | 948 | 943 | Q4-21 | 473 | 483 | 470 | |
| Q1-22 | 915 | 925 | 920 | Q1-22 | 465 | 475 | 470 | |
| LME REBAR FOB TK | BUSHELING | |||||||
| Bid | Ask | Value | Bid | Ask | Value | |||
| Aug-21 | 700 | 710 | 705 | Aug-21 | 641 | 651 | 646 | |
| Sep-21 | 703 | 713 | 708 | Sep-21 | 638 | 648 | 643 | |
| Oct-21 | 715 | 725 | 720 | Oct-21 | 653 | 663 | 658 | |
| Nov-21 | 713 | 723 | 718 | Nov-21 | 665 | 675 | 670 | |
| Q4-21 | 714 | 724 | 719 | Q3-21 | 667 | 677 | 672 | |
| Q1-22 | 680 | 690 | 685 | Q4-21 | 650 | 660 | 655 | |
| US HRC USD/short ton | NWE HRC EUR/metric ton | |||||||
| Bid | Ask | Value | Bid | Ask | Value | |||
| Aug-21 | 1880 | 1890 | 1885 | Aug-21 | 1145 | 1155 | 1150 | |
| Sep-21 | 1870 | 1880 | 1875 | Sep-21 | 1127 | 1137 | 1132 | |
| Oct-21 | 1740 | 1750 | 1745 | Oct-21 | 1113 | 1123 | 1118 | |
| Nov-21 | 1645 | 1655 | 1650 | Nov-21 | 1105 | 1115 | 1110 | |
| Q4-21 | 1662 | 1672 | 1667 | Q4-21 | 1096 | 1106 | 1101 | |
| Q1-22 | 1498 | 1508 | 1503 | Q1-22 | 959 | 969 | 964 | |