Imported containerized ferrous scrap bookings in Bangladesh paused amid a lockdown to control the resurgence of COVID-19, while mills hiked finished steel prices on high raw material costs. Few offers were active in the containerised market this week. Bulk scrap importers bought on a need basis after three deals in the prior week.
Bangladesh is under a week-long lockdown since Monday. It was expected that ahead of Ramadan most infrastructure projects would ramp up activities and traders/retailers would restock material for post-Eid demand. But sentiment turned bearish after the lockdown and the government could extend the restrictions further.
The daily Davis Index for containerized shredded, Friday, settled at $477.5/mt cfr Chattogram, unchanged from Thursday. The index rose by $8.75/mt from the prior week. UK-origin containerized shredded offered at $485-490/mt cfr Chattogram, with buyers at $470-475/mt cfr Chattogram.
In the bulk market, three deals from the prior week came to light. Two mixed cargo from the US West Coast reported at an average price of $465/mt cfr Chattogram while full shredded was offered around $480/mt cfr Chattogram on Friday. A rise in Kanto tender bids pushed offers higher. On Friday, the winning bid for the April Kanto tender was JPY404/mt or $4/mt higher than bids in March.
Latin American yards preferred to offer in the domestic market as Bangladeshi bids turned unattractive. Yards held asking prices firm amid vessel space crunch. The daily index for HMS 1&2 (80:20) from Latin America settled unchanged at $458/mt cfr Chattogram.
In the US domestic market, April monthly settlements reported higher-than-expected prices. The indices for US-origin, UK-origin, and Australia-origin containerized HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $463.75/mt, $453/mt, and $465/mt cfr Chattogram, respectively. Deals for HMS 1&2 (80:20) were at $455-460/mt cfr Chattogram pushing offers to $460-465/mt cfr Chattogram.
Trades for premium scrap grades like P&S and Busheling were thin on limited offers. UK-origin busheling in containers offered at $500-510/mt cfr Chattogram on the possibility of tightening industrial generation due to shutdown of auto plants. The Davis indexes for P&S and #1 busheling, Friday, settled at $490/mt and $503/mt, up by $9/mt and $7/mt, respectively, from the prior week. While 1,000mt UAE origin P&S in containers sold at $478-480/mt cfr Chattogram.
Domestic steel prices rise
Increased demand for the domestic scrap and bullish global cues pushed the weekly index for ship scrap equivalent to P&S up by BDT1,250/mt to BDT45,500/mt ex-yards. Prices rebounded amid pre-Ramadan restocking after inching down late last week. The index for domestic HMS 1&2 (80:20) rose by BDT1,250/mt to BDT44,500/mt ex-yard Chattogram.
On Friday, domestic billet offers surged to BDT60,000-60,500/mt ex-works Chattogram. Despite slow demand, the weekly index for billet jumped to BDT60,000/mt ex-works, rising BDT5,375/mt from the prior Friday. Prices could lose steam in Ramadan, believe mill owners. Southeast Asian billet offers surged on rising prices in China. Trades reported at $660-665/mt cfr China for 3sp billets from ASEAN suppliers.
Large steelmakers held rebar asking rates at higher levels on higher imported scrap prices. BSRM, AKS, GPH, and KSRM raised their asking rates for rebar by BDT500-1000/mt to BDT69,000-71,000/mt ex-works. The index for large steelmakers’ rebar, Friday, increased by BDT1,125/mt to BDT70,250/mt ex-works. Large mills cancelled discounts on recovering demand and to maintain the spread between scrap purchases and rebar sales.
The index for rebar from medium-scale mills in Dhaka was up by BDT2,000/mt to BDT66,250/mt ex-works. Small-scale mills sold rebar in the range BDT60,000-61,000/mt ex-works, pushing the weekly index up by BDT2,500/mt.
On Friday, 16mm ship plate was at BDT52,500-53,000/mt ex-yards while imported scrapped vessels prices remained at $500-510/ldt cfr Chattogram impacting purchases and slowing demolition rates.
($1=BDT84.5)