FOB China HRC
The index fell by $1/t last Friday (6.8.21) to US$928/t, MTD US$928.80/t.
Some cities in east China’s Jiangsu province tightened policies to control the spread of Covid, slowing transportation between Shanghai and Jiangsu with drivers required to have frequent Covid tests. Participants remain cautious in seaborne market given China’s uncertain steel export tax policy, with some hearing that an export tax for coils might be rolled out 10-15 August.
Major Chinese mills remained silent on export offers, while some traders are aggressively inducing bids at $915-945/t cfr Vietnam for Chinese SS400 HRC. But those traders require buyers to take the full responsibility for any Chinese steel export tax changes and attract no buying interest. Sorting out tax responsibility for earlier orders is taking focus away from new business. (Argus)
Turkish Scrap
Further September shipment cargoes booked
Poor finished steel demand, weaker lira keeps sentiment negative
Turkish Deepsea import ferrous scrap prices were flat Aug. 6 as Turkish mills continued to buy for September shipment, sources said. S&P Global Platts assessed Turkish imports of premium heavy melting scrap 1/2 80:20 Aug. 6 at $462.50/mt CFR, unchanged on day.
A Venezuela-origin cargo totaling 25,000 mt was booked Aug. 6 by an Izmir mill, with HMS 1/2 80:20 at $460/mt CFR. The deal was confirmed for first-half September shipment, and normalized to $465/mt CFR for index equivalent premium HMS 1/2 80:20. The Izmir-based mill is now the fourth Turkish buyer heard to have procured Venezuela-origin material over the past two years.
Multiple sell-side sources cited a US-origin sale at $460-$461/mt CFR Turkey, but further details were not disclosed. An EU trading source said European exporters had sold as low as $450/mt CFR for EU-origin HMS 1/2 80:20 but this could not be confirmed.
Elsewhere, a Baltic-origin cargo totaling 28,000 mt initially booked Aug. 3 by Samsun mill was heard to have been finalized Aug. 6. The cargo comprised of 17,000 mt HMS 1/2 80:20, 9,000 mt shredded scrap, and 2,000 mt bushelling bundles, at $471.50/mt CFR cargo average, and was confirmed by the seller for September shipment. (Platts)
EU HRC
The northwest European hot-rolled coil (HRC) market slipped a touch Friday, as participants expected domestic producers to reduce prices to prevent too much market share leaking to imported tonnes.
Argus’ benchmark daily NW EU HRC index fell by €9.25/t today to €1,140.50/t, after dropping by €4.75/t yesterday. The daily headline Italian index was static at €1,045.75/t.
Import offers into Antwerp have been around €950/t cfr and lower from some exporters, substantially below the domestic market. And the market has quietened dramatically in the last five weeks or so amid the usual seasonal lull. Illiquidity has been exacerbated by the fact that people accrued more holidays during the pandemic, and as participants have paused for breath after the unprecedented surge in prices since last August.
German producer Thyssenkrupp ended its force majeure today, except for its precision strip mill in Hagen.
On the CME Group’s North European contract, the first quarter traded at €960/t today, stable from the last trade for the strip. But nearby months softened in brisk screen trade, with October slipping to €1,120/t, off €10/t from yesterday’s settlement, while August dipped €5/t to €1,150/t. January nudged down by €3/t to €1,042/t, while December nudged up €1/t to €1,082/t. March 2022 traded up €15/t to €915/t. There has been substantial selling interest in the fourth and first quarters from physical hedgers of late. There were 758 lots, equating to 15,160t, of open interest on the fourth quarter yesterday, and 674 lots, 13,480t, on January-March. (Argus)
| Indices | Price | Change | MTD |
| Platts TSI HMS 1/2 80:20 CFR Turkey ($/mt) | 462.50 | 0.00 | 484.83 |
| Steel Rebar FOB Turkey ($/mt) | 700.00 | -5.00 | 720.57 |
| Argus HRC NW Europe (€/mt) | 1140.50 | -9.25 | 1165.08 |
| Argus FOB China HRC ($/mt) | 928.00 | -1.00 | 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 | 460 | 470 | 465 | |
| Sep-21 | 935 | 945 | 940 | 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 | 625 | 635 | 630 | 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 | 705 | 715 | 710 | Sep-21 | 640 | 650 | 645 | |
| 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 | 1138 | 1148 | 1143 | |
| Oct-21 | 1751 | 1761 | 1756 | Oct-21 | 1117 | 1127 | 1122 | |
| Nov-21 | 1650 | 1660 | 1655 | Nov-21 | 1099 | 1109 | 1104 | |
| Q4-21 | 1672 | 1682 | 1677 | Q4-21 | 1098 | 1108 | 1103 | |
| Q1-22 | 1512 | 1522 | 1517 | Q1-22 | 963 | 973 | 968 | |