Italy’s scrap market to see limited downward movement in May

According to the Italian scrap consumers association Nuovo Campsider, in April this year local scrap quotations softened by €5/mt, also because the stability of the European Union (EU) and Turkish markets did not allow any further price decrease. Meanwhile, supply and demand levels are also well balanced, and so, after the downtick recorded in the first part of last month, local scrap quotations stabilized at the following levels:

For the current month, Italian steelmakers scheduled to slow their activity on the output side as the domestic finished product markets have been fairly sluggish. For this reason, scrap traders may be forced to accept another slight lowering of steel mills' purchase prices. Meanwhile, it is thought that domestic scrap quotations will not decrease by more than €5/mt in May. This is the most likely scenario, especially if the other EU scrap markets see another month of sideways movement.