At present, scrap traders are sitting on the fence, waiting to see if the steel mills will decide to step up their scrap purchase activity in February. For now, there is a lack of clarity surrounding the price trend, as scrap quotations have decreased by just €5/mt, rarely dipping any further. Current scrap prices in the Italian market are as follows:
HMS |
€320-335/mt ($419-439/mt) |
Shredded scrap |
€345-360/mt ($452-472/mt) |
Busheling scrap |
€360-370/mt ($472-485/mt) |
Prices are excluding VAT, with delivery costs included.
Meanwhile, in recent days a huge strike by Italian truck drivers has almost frozen trade in the country, and this has provided some degree of support for domestic steel scrap prices.
It is hard to forecast the scrap price tendencies in Italy for the month of February; however, a moderate decrease is more likely in the case of higher scrap grades. Meanwhile, HMS scrap could even indicate a sideways trend, while no upticks in scrap prices are forseen.
Meanwhile, some rebar producers may fear that a decrease in their scrap purchase prices could cause a price downtrend for their finished steel products and so would prove to be counterproductive.