Though the sole producer and traders of flat steel in Romania have been aiming to prevent sharp price declines, there has been significant downward pressure caused by the current oversupply in the market and very weak demand. As a result, the sole local producer and Romanian-based traders have offered discounts and more are anticipated in the coming weeks, given the current bearish mood. Furthermore, in addition to the negative influence of the domestic market, the EU flats market has been trending down, resulting in Romania's lower interest in imports.
“The overall sentiment remains the same, with customers being cautious and postponing their bookings. This has resulted in a slowdown in demand especially in the construction segment,” a representative of the sole producer told SteelOrbis.
Over the past week, domestic prices for cold rolled coils (CRC) have gone down by €55/mt to €830/mt ex-works. In the coated market, HDG and PPGI prices have sunk both by €50/mt to €880/mt ex-works and €1,230/mt ex-works respectively from the previous week. In the meantime, prices for domestic origin hot rolled coil (HRC) have remained stable at €760/mt ex-works, at least for now.
On the traders’ side, poor sentiments have resulted in hot rolled sheet (HRS) prices declining by €30-60/mt to €800-840/mt ex-warehouse. The workable price for cold rolled sheets (CRS) has decreased by €10-20/mt to €960-1,000/mt ex-warehouse.
At the same time, Romanian traders’ interest in flat steel imports remains low, though there have been some offers in the past week. According to sources, Serbia and Slovakia have offered HRC at €780/mt DAP and €800/mt DAP, respectively. In the coated segment, Italy has placed offers for HDG and PPGI at €1,200/mt DAP, and a trader from the UAE has offered HDG at €765/mt CIF to Constanta.