Asian slab exporters have been more active in distant markets recently with new deals reported to have been done to Europe and Turkey. The active trading has led to bullish sentiments in the market with suppliers assessing the possibilities of increasing prices in the next round of sales. The previous high-priced sales to Latin America have also added to the situation.
A fresh deal for 40,000 mt of ex-Vietnam slabs has been signed to Europe at $670/mt FOB, translating to around $710/mt CFR or slightly above. This has signaled a strong improvement from the previous offers and sales for ex-China slabs at $640/mt FOB. Since last week, offers for ex-Vietnam slabs have been heard at $650-655/mt FOB.
A deal for ex-China slabs to Europe was reported to have been done early this week at $720-730/mt CFR, but, taking into account that the price includes some extras, the base FOB price is close to $640/mt FOB.
Turkey has also become active in slab purchases, though price levels have been lower than in Europe. According to sources, ex-Russia slabs have changed hands at $625/mt CFR. Early in the week, 40,000 mt of ex-Indonesia slabs were sold at $605/mt FOB, translating to slightly below $650/mt CFR. In addition, 20,000 mt of ex-Malaysia material have been traded at $665-668/mt CFR. Chinese suppliers have also been in negotiations with Turkish customers, with one or two deals discussed at $660/mt CFR, though this could not be confirmed by the time of publication. After the latest deals, offers for slabs have increased. An Indonesian mill has increased its target level to $615-620/mt FOB, while some Asian and Russian suppliers are expecting close to $700/mt CFR in Turkey now.
As SteelOrbis reported earlier, a deal for ex-China slabs was done to Latin America at $670/mt FOB earlier. While in addition to this, an ex-Russia sale has also been heard at above $650/mt FOB to this destination.