By Cem Turken, Paul Lim, Lee Allen, Carrie Bone, Amy Hinton, Tianran Zhao – Friday 17 December
The onset of traditional seasonal slowdowns led to lackluster trading activity in all major global ferrous scrap markets in the week ended Friday December 17, with many participants already firmly in holiday mode.
- Turkey remains out of the market following two lower-priced cargo buys
- Trading subdued on both the United States’ East and West Coasts amid buyer abstention
- Covid-19 surge, poor steel demand keep Vietnamese importers out of market
- Chinese domestic scrap prices gain ground amid stocking drive
- Bearishness pushes Taiwanese bids for containerized scrap lower
- India’s prices inch down on poor sentiment
Turkey
Turkey was conspicuously absent from the global deep-sea ferrous scrap export market this past week, since concluding US and European cargo deals at lower prices late the previous week.
Ongoing currency volatility, weak finished steel demand and the approach of the holiday season have kept Turkish mills out of the market.
United States
Bulk ferrous scrap exports from the US East and West Coasts have been subdued by poor reinforcing bar demand, with seasonal slowdowns hitting the market.
Vietnam
Vietnamese buyers have remained out of the deep-sea ferrous scrap market for almost two months amid poor downstream demand for finished steel products and a resurgence of Covid-19 cases in the country.
China
China’s domestic steel scrap prices gained ground this past week with mills stocking up on material, but interest in imports remained low in the country, market sources told Fastmarkets.
Taiwan
Bearish sentiment pushed Taiwanese bids for containerized US ferrous scrap imports lower this past week with appetites weak and trading sparse.
India
Prices for shredded scrap imported into India continued to inch lower during the week as a result of poor market sentiment.
