Import hot rolled coil (HRC) prices in southern Europe have maintained their downward trend and sentiments have remained largely negative given no visible signs of a demand recovery. In particular, foreign HRC suppliers have once again pushed prices down, trying to boost sales amid buyers’ resistance to high quotes, though trade activity has remained muted. Besides, falling domestic quotations have continued to exert pressure on the import trade.
Import HRC offers have been reported at €790-850/mt CFR, down by €10/mt week on week, with the lower end of the range corresponding to import offers in the Italian market and with the higher end of the range in Spain. More specifically, offers from Turkey have been reported at €790-800/mt CFR Italy, duty paid, compared to at €830/mt CFR last week, while ex-Turkey HRC offers to Spain have been voiced at around €835/mt CFR, duty paid.
At the same time, Asian suppliers, like those from Japan, Taiwan and South Korea, have been offering their materials at €810-820/mt CFR Italy, down by €20/mt over the past week. Meanwhile, ex-Asian HRC offers have been voiced in Spain at €840-850/mt CFR, down by €10/mt CFR on the higher end of the range week on week. In particular, ex-Taiwan and ex-Vietnam HRC offers have remained at €840/mt CFR Spain, while offers from Japan have dropped from €860/mt CFR to €850/mt CFR Spain this week.
Furthermore, offers for ex-India boron-added HRC have been heard at €780-800/mt CFR southern Europe, the same as last week.
"There is very low interest in import material, as import HRC prices are currently at almost the same level as domestic prices, especially in Italy, where workable prices have been heard at €850/mt ex-works and bids have already been reported at €800/mt ex-works,” a market insider told SteelOrbis.
In addition, local HRC prices in southern Europe have settled at around €840-870/mt ex-works, compared to €890-920/mt ex-works last week. This decline was mainly caused by weak demand both from end-users and distributors. However, some sources believe local HRC prices will hit the bottom sooner rather than later, considering the high levels of production costs.
