The weekly Davis Index for basic pig iron (BPI) fell by $25/mt to $545/mt cfr New Orleans port Friday on lower sale prices to alternative destinations while the CIS BPI index fell by $24/mt to $505/mt fob Black Sea as supply exceeded demand.
Buyers remain inactive though sufficient offers from the CIS and Brazil persist in the global market. Exporters don’t have an option except to provide significant discounts to spur sales. As a result, a Russian producer sold BPI to China at $545/mt cfr last week. Bid levels in China are heard as low as $520/mt cfr, but most sellers are not willing to drop that low yet.
A new booking was heard in the US from Brazil at no higher than $545/mt cfr this week, but exact details of the transactions were not available at the time of publication.
Demand is currently lacking in the US especially for prime grades, but BPI purchases may revive near or after September trading where prime grade prices are slated to fall.
The Davis Index for nodular pig iron (NPI) imports decreased by $20/mt to $720/mt cfr Nola as offers remain firm on limited supply. US hot briquetted iron (HBI) imports fell by $15/mt to $455/mt cfr Nola on low activity. Both grades are also softening in line with other materials.
Italian imported pig iron market remained quiet amid summer vacations in the country. As a result, the weekly Davis Index for CIS BPI in Italy dropped by $20/mt to $545/mt cfr on Friday on strong bearish sentiment.
BPI offers from the CIS to Turkey were reported at $540/mt cfr, but they attracted minimal interest from buyers. Still, a supplier from Russia sold 3,000mt of semi-nodular pig iron at $550/mt fob to Turkey.