US West Coast export yard ferrous scrap prices varied by region on Tuesday as collection prices at docks adjusted to regional dynamics.
The Davis Index for US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) is trending flat and was up $0.50/mt to $427.50/mt cfr against last week’s $427/mt cfr Turkey.
Collection prices are rising in the EU and UK. In the US, market participants are expecting strong export demand on bulk to continue while noting that Turkey prices may have hit a temporary high as Turkish mills lowered bids and limited firm bidding for US scrap on Tuesday.
Buyers in Bangladesh are silent while Indian buyers have reduced inquiries amid regional lockdowns due to rising COVID-19 cases. Domestic steel trade is slowing down in various buying countries and softening the demand for domestic scrap. In Pakistan, finished steel prices may drop on weaker demand and while domestic buying prices in Bangladesh have been flat, they could drop within the week. Nonetheless, West Coast exporters are planning for bulk buys from these countries given limited container availability and generally a positive outlook towards respective steel-consuming investments in summer.
Japanese export scrap offers remain firm, especially after the recent higher Kanto scrap bids, but buyers are cautious about the net demand and price effect from Asian countries. South Korea has maintained domestic prices flat but may trend up as Taiwan and Vietnam domestic scrap prices increased this week.
The Portland weekly Davis Indexes for export yard scrap decreased by $24/gt for #1 HMS to $329/gt delivered, P&S 5ft fell by $11/gt to $354/gt delivered, and shredder feed adjusted down by $5/gt to $251/gt delivered.
Domestic mills in Portland decreased their scrap buying prices by $20-25/gt in April compared to March settled prices as some mills that encountered 2-3 weeks’ outages the previous month were carrying over sufficient scrap inventories. While some market participants reported maintaining the higher scrap buying prices from the previous week, others received less at regional docks.
In Los Angeles, dock prices moved higher on buying activity at the docks. The index for #1 HMS increased by $30/gt to $295/gt delivered while P&S 5ft rose by $21/gt to $306/gt delivered. Shredder feed rose by $16/gt to $200/gt delivered. Prices were expected to firm up in April with the uptrend in export scrap both in bulk and containers.
San Francisco’s export yard indexes held unchanged for #1 HMS and P&S 5ft at $326/gt and $338/gt delivered, respectively. Shredder feed rose by $2/gt to $221/gt delivered.