After a long absence from the market, Romania's sole flat steel mill, which had been experiencing financial difficulties, has received government assistance and so its offers are now beginning to be heard in the local market again.
According to sources, the local flat steel producer has started to offer hot rolled coil (HRC) at €590-600/mt CPT.
Meanwhile, in the spot market, due to rises in the EU flat steel market and somewhat improved demand, Romanian flat steel spot traders have chosen to raise their offer prices over the past week. However, market participants believe that, due to the lack of strength of trading activity, the price increase may not receive support and so may be temporary.
As a result, Romanian flat steel spot prices for hot rolled sheet (HRS) and cold rolled sheet (CRS) have climbed to €725-750/mt ex-warehouse and €835-850/mt ex-warehouse, up from €715-735/mt ex-warehouse and €820-835/mt ex-warehouse last week, respectively.
Moreover, in the import segment, HRC offers from Turkey have decreased this week, with FOB prices at approximately $520-545/mt and freight costs at around €25/mt, resulting in a price to Romania at around €530-555/mt CFR, down from €545-560/mt CFR in previous weeks. In contrast, Ukrainian suppliers' HRS and CRS offers remain stable from previous weeks, at €650-660/mt DAP and €740-750/mt DAP, respectively.
