In a market often at the mercy of price volatility, the month of March confirmed the pig iron and ferroalloy prices achieved in Italy in late February. Transactions by mills, however, have not taken off - perhaps because the prices are often considered too high, though the situation is a little better for foundries. This is the overall situation in the Italian pig iron and ferroalloys markets, as described by Assofermet - the Italian association of traders of iron, steel, non-ferrous metals, ferrous scrap, hardware and similar goods.
The stocks of pig iron at steel mills have remained consistently medium-to-low, in line with the outputs of finished products, but also given the part played by alternative materials, while pig iron stocks at foundries' warehouses cover an average of two months.
As regards prices of refined pig iron, which were influenced in recent Italian transactions by the existence of spot batches sold at lower prices than market quotations, a substantial stability may be confirmed at the international level, with perhaps a slight decrease of about $15/mt FOB due to the slowdown in the Turkish market. Prices have remained stable for hematite pig iron and ductile iron.
If there is no doubt that global scrap quotations will influence pig iron prices to a certain extent, in general pig iron producers believe that in the near future pig iron costs will necessarily have to come to terms with quotations for raw materials, i.e., coke and iron ore, which in recent days have confirmed their upward trend in contracts and which have given signs of higher quotations on the spot market.
Speaking of ferroalloys, there is some stability. Moreover, purchase methods have changed: contracts are more often for small volumes and quick deliveries, in a ‘just in time' perspective. Purchases are not intended for storing as in the past, but rather for random sales. As regards noble ferroalloys, the market is quite satisfactory: prices tend to rise and are under the control of producers. Customers are abandoning negotiations and are getting ready for new increases.