Imported ferrous scrap offers Tuesday moved up by $3-5/mt in South Asia following global cues. A few buyers turned active to restock scrap ahead of an uptick in prices. Some recyclers say sellers are under pressure amid easing supply and an increase in the number of offers in the market, while others say there is a shortage of scrap in Pakistan and Bangladesh.
In Turkey, the daily Davis Index for US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) increased by $3.67/mt to $289.67/mt cfr on Monday amid anticipation of new deals.
Pakistan
Steel mills in Pakistan resumed trades as offers started moving up sharply. Buyers’ inquiries boosted offers up by $3-5/mt on anticipation of stronger markets in the coming days.
The daily Davis Index for containerized shredded Tuesday rose by $0.5/mt to settle at $314.56/mt cfr Port Qasim from Monday. UK-origin containerized shredded traded at $314-315/mt cfr Port Qasim on Tuesday with most offers at $317-320/mt cfr Qasim. Offers from the US and European yards were at $312-315/mt cfr Port Qasim. Some trades were heard amid a shortage of domestic supply and limited inventories at mills.
Dubai-origin #1 HMS scrap in containers traded at $305-307/mt cfr Port Qasim. Offers for PNS sarya scrap were at $310-313/mt cfr on Tuesday. The Davis Index for UAE-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $299/mt cfr Port Qasim, up by $1/mt from Monday. Major mills stayed away from booking HMS scrap as they found offers unviable than shredded trades.
The index for US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $300.25/mt cfr Port Qasim, up by $2.04/mt from Monday. In the domestic market, Bala billet prices were flat on weak demand at PKR90,000-90,300/mt ex-works Punjab. Domestic Pure Q toke scrap equivalent to shredded traded at PKR70,500-71,000/mt del Lahore mill, unchanged from Monday.
Leading rebar producers in Karachi kept base offer prices unchanged at PKR111,000-112,000/mt ex-works. Mills are still waiting for a recovery in steel demand from the infrastructure segment.
Bangladesh
Bangladeshi mills purchased scrap on a need basis. A mill in Chattogram actively sought scrap in higher volumes to commence production at a new facility. However, most Bangladeshi buyers resisted higher prices.
The Davis Index for containerized shredded, Tuesday, settled at $324.93/mt cfr Chattogram, up by $0.5/mt from Monday. Buyers were less interested in shredded in containers with limited bids at $315-318/mt cfr Chattogram. On the other hand, suppliers refused to reduce shredded offers to below $325-328/mt cfr Chattogram amid tight supply.
In the bulk market, West Coast US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) offers were at $315-320/mt cfr Chattogram. But after a couple of bulk deals last week, buying interest has lowered significantly. Japanese bulk scrap suppliers stayed away from Bangladeshi markets.
The daily index for containerized US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20), Tuesday, settled at $314.75/mt cfr Chattogram, up by $1.96/mt. In absence of major trades, higher offers pushed the index up. Declining domestic steel prices kept most buyers focused on lower-priced material. Some trades for Australia, UK, and US-origin HMS scrap were at $310-315/mt cfr Chattogram.
The index for Latin America-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) settled at $309/mt cfr Chattogram on Tuesday, up by $1/mt, with trades at the index price. South American yards offered HMS #1 at $312-315/mt cfr Chattogram amid healthy domestic demand in suppliers’ countries.
Bangladesh Steel Re-rolling Mills (BSRM) is investing BDT700crore ($82mn) to increase its annual rod production by 500,000mt. The expansion will be funded by the company cash and bank loans. The company is expanding its capacity to meet growing domestic demand with an expected operational start date by mid-2023.
Domestic shipbreaking scrap equivalent to P&S traded at BDT31,000/mt ex-yard Chattogram. HMS 1&2 (80:20) was priced at BDT28,500-29,000/mt ex-yard Chattogram flat over this week. Dhaka-based finished steel producers sold rebars at BDT48,500/mt ex-works, down BDT500/mt from last week. Most mills are failing to make good profits and may curtail production. Construction activities at many infrastructure projects are yet to return to pre-COVID levels.
($1= PKR162.32; BDT84.75)