Subcontinental ship recycling markets maintained their upward trend last week, especially in Bangladesh and India. Turkey has seen a slight improvement, but in Pakistan, market sentiment is declining, according to a report by GMS.
Another report by Best Oasis noted that prices being offered by the subcontinent market for securing tonnage have probably reached their peak and the price curve is expected to flatten out in the coming week.
COVID-19 alarm
Rising number of COVID-19 cases in India and Turkey are a cause of concern, and possible lockdowns could affect business in these two countries, subsequently changing the dynamics of the sub-continental market.
Pakistan
In Pakistan, prices cooled-off after two massive deals were secured last week — Sinokor VLOC Sinocarrier (39,125 LDT) and Panamax bulker The Merciful (9,796 LDT) at USD 480/LT LDT. Oddly enough, local steel prices in Gadani have improved despite this fall in prices.
Bangladesh
With prices in Bangladesh improving last week, more tonnage can be expected here in the coming week. Drop in prices in Pakistan by $15-20/mt brought Bangladesh back into competition towards the end of last week.
Turkey
The Turkish market seems to be going through a shaky period, climbing and crashing in successive weeks. The vessel prices have improved by about $10/mt, in light of the recent improvements in local fundamentals. Imported scrap prices have softened by about $ 20/mt compared to last week, according to Best Oasis report. Domestic steel prices in the Turkish market have increased with the weakening of the Lira against the US dollar.
India
HKC sales in India since the beginning of the year in India have been below par. There have been a few specialist non-ferrous (stainless steel tankers, passenger vessels, reefers and smaller LDT units) working for India, but very few larger LDT, dry or wet units, are coming to Alang – bogged down by its modest price offering despite demand — and have been ending up in Pakistan or Bangladesh of late.