Bangladesh mills resumed containerized and bulk trades as demand showed signs of recovery. A few buyers looked to stock up before prices increase. Dipping inventories also encouraged buyers to restock materials.
In the bulk marker, a leading steelmaker bought 27,000mt HMS 1&2 (80:20) from Australia and New Zealand at $313.5/mt cfr Chattogram. These prices represent a hike of $5-10/mt from last week’s bid levels.
The Davis Index for containerized shredded, Friday, settled at $324.09/mt cfr Chattogram, up by $$4/mt from a week ago. Limited containers of shredded from Europe, Australia, and New Zealand traded at $320-323/mt cfr Chattogram against bids of $315-318/mt cfr Chattogram. On Friday, offers for containerized shredded from the UK were heard at $325-330/mt cfr Chattogram.
The index for containerized US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $312.14/mt cfr Chattogram, up by $9/mt from the prior week. Some trades for Australia, UK, and US-origin HMS scrap were at $310-315/mt cfr Chattogram.
The index for UK/EU-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) rose by $10/mt to $308/mt cfr Chattogram from the prior week. A few sellers offered HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $308-310/mt cfr Chattogram, while bids were at $300-305/mt cfr Chattogram on Friday.
The index for Latin America-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $307/mt cfr Chattogram, up by $7/mt from last week. Offers were scarce since most Brazilian traders sought $305-310/mt cfr Chattogram for HMS 1&2 (80:20) against bids of $300/mt cfr Chattogram. Trades were reported at $310-312/mt cfr Chattogram for Latin American HMS #1 over this week.
The Davis Index for busheling settled at $340/mt cfr Chattogram, up by $5/mt. The weekly index for P&S scrap was at $317/mt cfr, up by $4/mt. Brazilian P&S scrap containers traded at $315-320/mt cfr Chattogram while offers for the grade from UK/EU were at $320-322/mt cfr Chattogram against bids of $315/mt cfr Chattogram.
Finished, semi-finished steel
Domestic steel demand in Bangladesh is yet to return to the pre-COVID-19 levels. Only branded rebar suppliers were able to afford imported scrap. Though activities are picking up and end-user demand may rise in the coming days.
The weekly index for domestic billet Friday settled at BDT40,250/mt ex-works Chattogram, down by BDT500/mt, with trades at the index price. Major steelmakers in Chattogram are offering volume-based discounts to push sales amid a pile-up of finished inventories.
The weekly Davis Index for rebar from medium steelmakers settled at BDT49,500/mt ex-works, down by BDT250/mt, inclusive of VAT. Rebar made by small-scale producers traded at BDT48,500/mt ex-works, down by BDT250-500/mt from the prior week. Small scale steelmakers offered rebar at prices down by at least BDT3,000-5,000/mt ex-works compared to the prices quoted by large steel producers like BSRM and AKS at BDT56,000/mt and BDT54500/mt ex-works, respectively.
Domestic and shipbreaking scrap
In the shipbreaking market, Bangladeshi recyclers kept bids for scrapped ships unchanged at $360-370/ldt cfr Chattogram from the prior week. Domestic shipbreaking scrap showed mixed trends, and the grade equivalent to P&S traded at BDT31,000/mt delivered mill, up by BDT250/mt from last week. The weekly index for HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at BDT28,500/mt ex-yard, down BDT250/mt.
($1=BDT84.79)