The weekly Davis Index for HMS 1&2 (80:20) or A3 scrap dropped by $23/mt to $427/mt fob Baltic Sea and by $11/mt to $435/mt fob Black Sea on Monday as negative sentiment gained in the export market.
Sales have not been reported since the beginning of January amid weak demand in export destinations, especially in Turkey. Moreover, Turkish mills cut bids for premium quality HMS 1&2 (80:20), including Russian origin, to $450-455/mt cfr after a sale from Denmark was reported at an average price of $465/mt cfr for a mixed composition cargo late last week.
Suppliers from St Petersburg and Rostov-on-Don have refused to accept such low bids from Turkey for now due to an uptrend in collection prices. Besides, exporters are wary to compromise on their offer prices since the export duty for ferrous scrap in Russia will be raised to a minimum of €45/mt at the end of this month.
Collection prices for scrap increased in the Russian market as exporters require tonnages to complete their cargoes, while inflow of the material is slow. As a result, the weekly Davis Index for HMS 1&2 (80:20) or A3 scrap rose by RUB1,000/mt ($13/mt) to RUB26,000/mt delivered St Petersburg dock on Monday and climbed by RUB150/mt ($2/mt) to RUB21,900/mt delivered Rostov-on-Don dock. Some scrap collectors are ready to pay a premium of RUB200-300/mt ($3-4/mt) for supply of large tonnages of the material.
($1 = RUB74.20)