The weekly Davis Index for basic pig iron (BPI) increased by $7/mt to $378/mt cfr New Orleans port on Thursday following the latest cargo sales at mounting prices along with higher offer levels.
The US has been actively booking BPI cargoes from the CIS over the past week, at prices ranging between $373-377/mt cfr Nola. The ensuing deals are expected to conclude near or above this span.
The current offers from the CIS are at $385-390/mt cfr Nola, for December or January shipment. Offers from Brazil are at around $370/mt fob, which would compare to about $390-395/mt cfr Nola. Buyers have not agreed to these price points yet.
Last week, BPI values noticeably dipped for the first time in almost three months by about $15/mt following several deals around Oct 15 at $369-373/mt cfr Nola. On Jun 4 BPI was $317/mt and has gradually increased, by approximately $60/mt since then.
Domestic ferrous trading for November will begin next week and is showing some strength with expectations of strong sideways price movements. Market participants feel that if prices do firm up in November, as expected, pig iron and other scrap alternatives will also continue to climb.
The Davis Index for nodular pig iron (NPI) imports increased by $12/mt to $438/mt cfr Nola as availability of the material is limited. The grade is being offered into the US market at around $440/mt cfr Nola and higher, for December shipment.
The weekly Davis Index for US hot briquetted iron (HBI) imports increased by $3/mt to $258/mt cfr Nola. New activity has not been heard for HBI as demand has been low, however the material is likely priced at this level on Thursday, compared to price trends for similar alternative grades.