Indian buyers resumed trades for imported scrap this week after resisting bullish offers last week. Though domestic scrap remains more viable over imported, a shortage of domestic material forced many mills to opt for imported scrap.
According to sources, a major steelmaker in Gujarat booked 32,000mt shredded bulk cargo from the US west coast at $270/mt cfr Kandla. This may have been the first bulk booking in the last two months.
In recent trade, 15,000mt of billet was sold at $395/mt fob to a Thailand-based importer. Offers for Chinese buyers were at $420-425/mt cfr China.
The daily Davis Index for containerized shredded, Friday, settled at $292.97/mt cfr India subcontinent, up by $3.56/mt from Thursday. Supplier yards held onto their material for better prices in the coming days.
The daily Davis Index for containerized US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $273.26/mt cfr India subcontinent, up by $4.58/mt from $268.68/mt cfr on Thursday.
The daily Davis Index for containerized shredded settled at $291.33/mt cfr Nhava Sheva on Friday, up by $5.33/mt from a day ago and by $11.33/mt from the prior week. Offers from the US and UK suppliers increased to $290-295/mt cfr Nhava Sheva on Friday. Suppliers were not keen on bids of $285-287/mt cfr Nhava Sheva.
The Davis Index for UAE-origin containerized HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $271.25/mt cfr Nhava Sheva, up by $11.25/mt from the prior week.
The index for US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $270.94/mt cfr Nhava Sheva, up by $1/mt from Thursday and by $7.94/mt from the prior week. The index for South African HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $268/mt cfr Nhava Sheva, up by $5/mt from the prior week. But offers have thinned from the country as the South African government has imposed a 2-month ban on exports of ferrous scrap.
Trades for #1 HMS reported at $265-270/mt cfr Ludhiana, up by $10-15/mt from the prior week.
The index for UK/Europe-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $261/mt cfr Nhava Sheva, up by $6/mt from the prior week. Trades for the grade in containers concluded at $260-265/mt cfr Nhava Sheva and Chennai. Australian-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) was offered at $270-275/mt cfr Nhava Sheva and Mundra, up $10/mt from the prior week.
In Goa and Chennai, West Africa-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) traded at $260-265/mt cfr, up by $5-10/mt from the prior week. Prices are expected to rise further next week.
The weekly indexes for busheling and P&S in containers settled at $303/mt cfr and $290/mt cfr Nhava Sheva, up by $10/mt and $7/mt, respectively, from the prior week. The index for Turning scrap rose by $12/mt to $245/mt cfr Nhava Sheva. A Brazilian trader is said to have sold Turning at $250/mt cfr Chennai.
Market update
Taiwan
The Davis Index for containerized US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) was at $243/mt cfr Taiwan, unchanged from the prior day but up by $3/mt from the prior week.
Demand for finished steel continued to be under pressure. But mills in Taiwan have resumed bookings this week in hopes of recovery in demand in the coming days. Deals for US and South American-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) were heard at $243/mt cfr and $235/mt cfr Taiwan, respectively. Turkish prices rose again with the Davis Index for US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) rising by $3/mt on Thursday from the day prior.
Japanese small bulk cargoes of HMS 1&2 (50:50) were offered at $255/mt cfr Taiwan, while shredded traded at $270-275/mt cfr Taiwan.