Tokyo steel has announced a third purchase price raise for domestic scrap in August effective Aug 18. The steelmaker had kept prices unchanged for 10 days amid limited activities during Obon holidays from Aug 8.
Bids were increased by JPY1,000/mt ($9/mt) for ferrous scrap delivered to all five of its works. Purchase prices for #2 HMS will be at JPY24,500/mt ($230/mt) delivered Utsunomiya works in the Kanto region, up by JPY1,000/mt from the prior price revision on Aug 8.
Bids for busheling for deliveries to Tahara and Utsunomiya plants are at JPY27,000/mt and JPY26,500/mt del plant, respectively.
Bids for #2 HMS and busheling are at JPY25,000/mt and JPY26,500/mt delivered Kyushu and JPY24,000/mt and JPY25,000/mt delivered Okayama mill, respectively.
Japanese domestic scrap prices have surpassed early July levels reaching a 45-day high. In the Kanto region, #2 HMS was offered at JPY24,500-25,000/mt fas port while HS and shindachi prices were at JPY27,500-28,000/mt fas and JPY27,000-27,500/mt fas Japan, respectively.
In export markets, #2 HMS traded at $280/mt cfr Vietnam and HS and shindachi scrap in small bulk cargo traded at $305/mt cfr Vietnam late last week.
Taiwan
In seaborne markets, no major deals were heard on Monday with the Davis Index for containerized US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) settling unchanged from Friday at $258/mt cfr Taiwan. Most exporters have raised offers and yards from the US quoted $270-273/mt for HMS 1&2 (90:10) on Monday.
Offers for Australia-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) were at $255-260/mt cfr Taiwan. Demand for finished steel in the domestic market continued to be under pressure. Manufacturers were expecting ferrous scrap prices to decline this week with no bulk deals heard in Turkey and the daily index for US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) settling flat at $285/mt cfr on the prior Friday.
But Japanese suppliers expect prices to rise supported by recovering demand for ferrous scrap in most Asian markets.
Japanese small bulk trades were heard for HMS 1&2 (50:50) at $270/mt cfr on Monday.
($1=TWD29.41; JPY106.34)