Having sold approximately 200,000 mt of rebar last week, Taiwanese producers have continued their sales and each is reported to have signed deals for another 10,000-20,000 mt. As a result, Taiwanese mills have halted their sales due to their belief that prices have hit the bottom. In the current week, major Taiwanese producer Feng Hsin’s rebar prices have remained unchanged at TWD 18,600/mt ($581/mt) ex-works. Electricity prices in Taiwan will rise by 12-15 percent in April, market sources also confirmed. The Taiwanese government has decided to take steps to compensate for the losses incurred by the state-run power supply firm. “Until now, the Taiwanese government has tried to limit inflation by keeping energy prices at artificial levels,” a market source said. The rise in energy prices will obviously increase production costs and steel prices in Taiwan.
Offers for ex-US HMS I/II (80:20) scrap in containers have rebounded by $3-5/mt over the past week to $355-358/mt CFR. There have been deals closed in the range of $352-354/mt CFR. However, ex-US HMS I/II 80:20 scrap offers to Taiwan have almost disappeared in the latter part of this week. A Taiwanese source commented, “Turkey is buying at a far higher price than Taiwan. US origin prices should stand at at least $360/mt CFR Taiwan now.”
Ex-Japan offers for H1/2 (50:50) scrap by bulk to Taiwan have moved up from $365-373/mt CFR recorded last week to $370-377/mt CFR. Th number of offers is still limited, according to market sources. This week, a Taiwanese mill closed a booking for ex-Japan H1/2 (50:50) at $369/mt CFR.
Domestic HMS I/II 80:20 scrap prices in Taiwan have remained stable this week at TWD 11,300/mt ($353/mt) delivered to mill. The sideways movement of the local scrap market is explained by Taiwanese mills’ unwillingness to pay higher levels for scrap imports.
$1 = TWD 31.98