The European hot rolled coil (HRC) market has continued to lose ground as producers struggle to hold prices firm amid persistently weak demand. Besides, the presence of cheaper imported material has only intensified the downtrend, putting additional strain on domestic pricing strategies.
More specifically, most local HRC prices from mills in northern Europe, mainly for July deliveries, have been voiced at €600-620/mt ex-works against €630-640/mt ex-works last week, while tradable prices in northern Europe have been estimated at €600/mt ex-works, versus €615-630/mt ex-works last week. “Buyers keep pushing for discounts and we anticipate new bookings at €590/mt ex-works,” a market insider told SteelOrbis.
Meanwhile, in Italy, most offers from mills have dropped at €580-610/mt ex-works from €620/mt ex-works last week. At the same time, workable prices have dropped as well, falling to €570-580/mt ex-works levels, down by €10-20/mt week on week. According to sources, buyers remain cautious, with some speculative bids dipping to €540–550/mt ex-works - though not yet reflective of actual market levels. Still, sentiment suggests HRC prices have not reached the bottom, leaving room for a further softening.
In the meantime, import trading activity in southern Europe has remained subdued this week, with most offers for import HRC in southern Europe voiced at €490-540/mt CFR, depending on the supplier, down by €30/mt CFR week on week. HRC offers from one of Indonesian mills have been reported at the lower end of the range or around €490/mt CFR, down from €510/mt CFR last week. However, according to sources, a lower price for ex-Indonesia HRC has also been reported at around €480/mt CFR. Besides, offers from India have been reported at €525-530/mt CFR, down by €10/mt week on week, though no new deals have been reported so far. Furthermore, offers for ex-Thailand HRC have been voiced from traders at €550/mt CFR.
Meanwhile, offers for ex-Turkey HRC have been estimated at €525-530/mt CFR, duty paid, mainly the same as last week, while offers for ex-Algeria HRC have been heard at €530-540/mt CFR.