The US export scrap market has remained slow in the last two weeks with no change in prices.
Turkish producers concluded a few ex-US scrap bookings toward the end of last week, but considering the sluggish economy and uncertainties in the financial market, Turkish producers are buying conservatively. Ex-US scrap prices from the East Coast to Turkey are currently in the range of $470 to $480/mt CFR-unchanged from two weeks ago. As the Ramadan holiday and summer vacation are over, it is expected that Turkish producers will need to replenish their scrap inventories to continue steel production, therefore market sources anticipate they will book another 10 or more cargos from the US in the short term.
On the US West Coast, ex-US scrap prices to the Far East have also remained relatively unchanged from two weeks ago. Ex-US container scrap offer prices to Taiwan continue to range from $470 to $480/mt CFR and ex-US bulk offer prices to China are still hovering around the level of $490 to $500/mt CFR. However, industry insiders believe these price levels will no longer be available as scrap demand is expected to strengthen, pushing the prices up by $5 to $10/mt in the coming weeks.
In the US domestic scrap market, prices for all grades have registered a strong sideways trend in the beginning of September, although some regions have seen prices increase slightly by $5/lt ($4.92/mt) on shredded scrap prices.