Middle Eastern and North African flat steel markets yet to see anticipated revival

In the Middle Eastern and North African flat steel market, the increased activity which was anticipated after Ramadan has not been observed yet.
 
In the UAE, demand for hot rolled coil (HRC) has not shown any improvement yet and import offers given to the UAE are considered to be high by local buyers. Chinese HRC offers to the UAE are at $720-730/mt FOB, while Russian steel producers are expected to announce new offers to the Middle Eastern markets in the coming days.
 
The Saudi Arabian HRC market is quiet and demand remains weak. In the Saudi Arabian domestic market, local producer Hadeed's HRC offers stand at $770-790/mt ex-works. The flat steel market in the country is predicted to see increased activity by next week, with higher demand and prices.
 
The Tunisian flat steel market is still calm following the Ramadan holiday and demand is low. In the meantime, it is reported that new import offers from foreign producers will begin to be announced starting from next week. The latest HRC offers of Russian producers to the Tunisian market were at $760/mt CFR, while their cold rolled coil (CRC) offers were at $860-880/mt CFR.
 
In the Egyptian market, local producer EZDK has said this week that it is keeping domestic HRC offers unchanged at EGP 4,450/mt ($ 744/mt) ex-works, while the producer has increased its HRC export offers to $750/mt FOB, from $735-740/mt FOB in previous weeks.
 
The demand improvement anticipated in the Middle Eastern and North African flat steel markets has yet to be seen. In the coming weeks, both domestic and import markets are expected to see increased activity with the receipt of new import offers.