Although most European producers of cold rolled coil (CRC) and hot dip galvanized (HDG) have kept refraining from firm offers given the continuous weakening of end-user demand in the region, the tradable prices for flats have dropped once again this week. Meanwhile, most foreign suppliers, both for CRC and HDG, have been refusing to provide additional discounts and have even decided to slightly increase their offers for European buyers this week.
More specifically, in the domestic CRC market in the EU, tradable prices have dropped to €740-760/mt ex-works, down by €10/my week on week, with the lower end of the range corresponding to offers in Italy and with the higher end corresponding to offers at €750-760/mt ex-works in northern Europe. “Order books are rather thin for CRC and also for HDG, as some mills still have materials for October delivery,” a market insider told SteelOrbis.
Meanwhile, import prices for CRC in southern Europe have been voiced at €680-690/mt CFR, versus €675-690/mt CFR last week, mostly for ex-Asia materials, including those from Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and India. As for import offers for CRC in northern Europe, most prices have been voiced at €680-700/mt CFR, up by €5/mt week on week.
At the same time, local prices for HDG have been estimated at €750/mt ex-works in Italy and at €750-760/mt ex-works northern Europe, down by €20/mt week on week. According to sources, some mills in the north have been still aiming for €770-780/mt ex-works, but these offer prices are considered to be overpriced. In the meantime, import offers for HDG in southern Europe have settled at €780-800/mt CFR, up by €10-20/mt week on week. Offers for ex-Vietnam HDG have been voiced at €780-790/mt CFR, up by €10/mt week on week, while suppliers from India have been offering their materials at €800/mt CFR, according to sources.
Offers for imported HDG in northern Europe have been estimated at €785-800/mt CFR, up by €5/mt on the higher end of the range over the past week.