Europe’s import hot rolled coil (HRC) segment has continued to see mainly ex-Asia offers and rather aggressive price levels this week. While some deals are being closed and some lots are under discussion, ex-Asia HRC prices are a minimum of €140/mt lower than local European indications. At the same time, local producers in northern Europe have been refraining from new offers this week, citing satisfactory orderbooks, though both in northern Europe and in Italy tradable levels for HRC have dropped this week.
Tradable prices for domestic HRC both in the north and south of the region have been reported at €840-850/mt ex-works, down by €5-10/mt week on week. “Some European mills have been trying to sustain their offers at around €870/mt ex-works, but this level seems totally detached from the reality,” a market insider said, adding, “Italian customers have been bidding at €800-820/mt ex-works for local HRC.”
In the meantime, import HRC prices in southern Europe have continued to show a sharp drop this week, falling to €690-725/mt CFR, versus €715-750/mt CFR last week. According to sources, a deal for 30,000 mt of ex-India HRC is reported to have done at $760/mt CFR Italy this week (or €692/mt CFR), while ex-India offers have decreased to €700-710/mt CFR, down by €5-10/mt week on week. At the same time, at the beginning of this week, market insiders in Spain reported several deals for ex-Indonesia HRC signed at €720/mt CFR, down by €15-20/mt week on week.
Offers for ex-Vietnam HRC have been reported at around €700/mt CFR, down by €25-30/mt week on week, while ex-Japan and ex-South Korea HRC have been offered at around €720-725/mt CFR, versus €745/mt CFR last week.
“The gap between import and local prices has been widening, exerting strong pressure on European producers,” a market insider said.
$1 = €0.91
