US Export yard ferrous scrap prices trended sideways on the West Coast with increases of around $4-5/gt in Los Angeles on Tuesday.
Export sentiment has strengthened on the West Coast after Turkish mills began looking for deals for April and May shipments. The Davis Index for US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) has risen by $3.27/mt over the past week to $423.24/mt cfr Turkey. However, the weakening of the Turkish lira against the US dollar could cause some volatility in the market in the near term.
Still, sellers are optimistic about the export market in April and have begun offering larger scrap volumes at higher prices especially at Los Angeles docks, where prices have trended lower compared to other West Coast docks in March. For example, #1 HMS has declined by around $9/gt delivered Los Angeles dock since the end of February, whereas the grade has decreased by $6/gt delivered Portland dock over the same timeframe.
The weekly Davis Indexes for export yard scrap in Portland decreased for #1 HMS by $1/gt to $361/gt delivered and fell by $2/gt to $263/gt for shredder feed. P&S 5ft remained unchanged at $374/gt delivered on Tuesday.
Participants in Portland expect declines of $10-15/gt on domestic secondary and shredded grades in April, despite expectations of $30-40/gt decreases in the Midwest, Southeast, and the East Coast. This expectation is being attributed to the lower than $50/gt increases witnessed in Portland compared to the other regions during March domestic trade.
In Los Angeles, the weekly indexes for #1 HMS and shredder feed increased by $5/gt to $265/gt and $177/gt delivered, respectively. P&S 5ft inclined by $4/gt to $285/gt delivered. LA docks did not see any price increase announcements during the week, though participants believe the market will incline due to the positive shift in exports.
San Francisco’s export yard indexes settled unchanged for #1 HMS, P&S 5ft, and shredder feed at $325/gt delivered, $336/gt, and $217/gt delivered, respectively.