European hot rolled coil (HRC) prices have seen an upward push this week, led by ArcelorMittal, which has raised its domestic offers across the EU by approximately €20/mt compared to last month. Other European mills, especially those in the north, are expected to attempt to follow suit in the near term. At the same time, European producers are increasingly counting on the introduction of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), which was published on December 17, while import trade activity has remained close to zero.
Specifically, in the local EU market, ArcelorMittal announced its new price target for HRC at €670/mt delivered, mainly for March deliveries, up €20/mt from the previous official levels announced last month.
“The rest of the mills will do the same, just to spark the last bookings to fulfill February capacity and keep prices on the high side before the holidays,” a European trader told SteelOrbis.
“It is very doubtful that the new levels will be workable,” another source said.
Meanwhile, local mills in northern Europe have kept targeting €630-650/mt ex-works for new orders for January and February deliveries, the same as last week. The tradable price levels for January delivery coils have been estimated at €610-630/mt ex-works, mainly for January delivery, up by €10/mt on the higher end of the range week on week.
In Italy, mills have been targeting €620-630/mt for January delivery, the same as last week, while the tradable price level for January delivery has been estimated at €600-630/mt ex-works, up by €10/mt on the higher end of the range week on week.
In the import segment, indicative offer prices for HRC have settled at €485-535/mt CFR, compared to €490-520/mt CFR last week, while HRC import offers including CBAM costs on DDP basis have been voiced at €600-620/mt levels, depending on the supplier, up by €5-10/mt on week.
Import offers on CFR basis, excluding CBAM-related costs, have remained scarce in the region this week, with most suppliers providing only indicative numbers. In particular, offers for ex-Indonesia HRC have settled at around $565/mt CFR, which translates to around €485/mt CFR. Besides, offers for ex-India HRC have been voiced at $575/mt CFR, which translates to around €491/mt CFR, the same as last week. Offers for ex-Thailand have settled at around €535/mt CFR, while offers for ex-Turkey HRC have remained at around €520/mt CFR, duty included.
Offers for ex-Algeria and ex-Turkey HRC on DDP basis, including CBAM, have been voiced at €610-620/mt DDP.