Although this week local HRC prices in Europe have remained relatively unchanged or showed only a slight upward bias compared to last week, market sentiments have improved following the announcement of new HRC prices by leading European producer ArcelorMittal, with a number of market insiders expecting mills in the region to follow suit and increase their domestic HRC offers in the short run by at least €25-30/mt. In the meantime, import trade activity has been very slow this week as customers are frightened by antidumping duties and blanket taxes, while purchase prices have also been rising due to the bounce in the Chinese market.
More specifically, this week ArcelorMittal has officially increased its local prices for November delivery by €40/mt to €590/mt base delivered both in northern and southern Europe. At the same time, while most European mills have not yet raised their offers, several mills in the north are reported to have increased their prices by €25/mt. According to sources, several deals for ex-Belgium HRC have been done at €580/mt DAP. However, no official announcement has been made from other mills in the EU, which means indicative tradable prices for local HRC in Italy have been estimated at €540/mt ex-works, the same as last week. “Mills have stopped quoting, waiting to see if they can realize the increase,” a market insider said.
In the import segment, trade has been extremely sluggish, with most customers refraining from new purchases due to antidumping duty risks and the imposition of blanket taxes, with bullish sentiments mounting amid the recovery of the Chinese market on the back of stimulus measures.
Import offers for ex-Asia HRC directly from mills have been estimated at €535-545/mt CFR, up by €10/mt week on week, while offers through traders have been heard at €560-580/mt CFR. More specifically, offers for ex-India HRC have been voiced at €535-540/mt CFR. Besides, according to sources, several deals for ex-Indonesia HRC have been signed at €560/mt CFR southern Europe, though a South Korean trader, which translates to around €540/mt CFR effective to the mill. Offers for ex-Turkey HRC have been heard at €580/mt CFR, including duty, through traders, or at around €550/mt CFR directly from mills, while offers for ex-Egypt HRC have been heard at €615/mt CFR, also through traders.