During the ninth week of 2007, the
CIS export markets were characterized by rising trends in regard to
scrap, billets,
longs and
plate prices, which were supported by both tight supply and strong demand. As for the domestic market, the week ended March 4 was governed by upward trends in respect to all product types in
Ukraine. Meanwhile, only the
scrap market, and
longs in some regional markets, showed positive trends in
Russia.
Scrap: Prices continue to move up due to scarce supply
During the ninth week, the Black Sea region
scrap market was characterized by an increasing trend as regards A3 grade
scrap prices, whereas a decreasing trend was seen in ex-
CIS scrap availability in the market. On the one hand, due to the continuous price increase in the world market for finished steel products,
CIS exporters upped their
scrap price by another $5/mt during the week ended March 4. On the other hand, due to the very strong domestic
scrap consumption in
Russia and
Ukraine, the volumes offered for export during the period in question were very limited.
The Russian domestic
scrap market was governed by a price increase trend during the ninth week. Following the example of
Severstal, which hiked its procurement
scrap price during the eighth week, various other major steelmakers increased their procurement
scrap prices by an average of Ruble 200-600/mt ($8-23) at the end of last week. However, these changes were not able to affect the existing range of Ruble 5,500-6,400/mt ($210-244). On the supply side, the tightness of
scrap availability in the Russian domestic market is becoming more visible as spring approaches and as steel producers increase their
production volumes.
The Ukrainian domestic
scrap market saw yet another rise by the amount of UAH 60/mt ($12) during the week ended March 4. The situation with
scrap supplies is very difficult in
Ukraine, so domestic steelmakers have to continuously increase their procurement
scrap prices to sustain
scrap deliveries.
Long Products: Billet prices continue to increase
During the last week of February,
CIS billet exporters came to the market with another price increase. Thanks to very strong demand for this material in the
Middle East and Gulf regions, the
CIS exporters were able to increase their prices up to $520-525/mt FOB Black Sea. Moreover, the demand from the regions in question continues to be strengthened further as the good weather reestablishes itself.
As for
longs, during the ninth week many
CIS producers came to the market with new increased price offers for April shipment. Ex-
CIS structural steel went up in price by an average of $10-20/mt, while
rebar were offered by at least $60/mt higher than during the previous week. The level of increase was largely dependent on the recipient country.
The Russian domestic
longs market was characterized by an increasing trend as regards
rebar and
wire rod. However, the trend for
rebar had regional characteristics. Thus, if in the European part of
Russia the
rebar price did not change considerably during the week in question, in the Ural and
Far East regions the price for
rebar increased by approximately $30/mt. As for
wire rod, the price level for this long product increased by an average of $15/mt over the week.
During the ninth week the Ukrainian domestic
longs market continued its rise. This upward trend especially affected structural steel which in the course of the week increased in price by UAH30-50/mt ($6 -10).
Rebar and
wire rod were affected to a lesser degree, showing an upward movement of UAH 10/mt ($2) and UAH 20/mt ($4) respectively.
Flat rolled: Tightness in plate market boosts CIS export prices
During the ninth week the
CIS export
flats market continued its stable trend, which started during the eighth week. The only exception to the rule was
plate, the price for which increased by $10/mt. The
plate market has been experiencing scarce supply since the beginning of February due to the downsizing of
production, especially in
Europe, and so last week's price rise for
CIS-origin products did not come as a surprise to the market consumers.
The Russian domestic
flats market preserved its stability during the ninth week. The only price fluctuation in the market was seen in regard to
galvanized steel, the price for which decreased by $ 10-15/mt in the Russian retail market.
The Ukrainian domestic
flats market, on the other hand, continued to rise during the ninth week. In the course of the week in question, HR and CR increased in price by UAH 25-30/mt ($5-6/mt) each.