Steel slab prices from the CIS have increased significantly over the past two weeks with the support of the positive situation in China, costlier scrap and some decent demand coming from various destinations.
According to sources, Turkey has recently booked two or three cargoes of slabs from Russia and Ukraine within $675-680/mt CFR, all for April production. The initial offers were voiced last week at $690/mt CFR, SteelOrbis has learned. Negotiations for additional cargoes continue, especially taking into account the recent price increase seen in Turkey’s import scrap market.
Other destinations have also been interested in slabs from the CIS with deals done within the past 10 days. A medium-sized lot has been sold to Europe at $660/mt FOB, while around 40,000 mt cargo has been traded to Mexico at around $670/mt FOB, while some sources have reported this deal as having been concluded at $700/mt CFR.
Overall, ex-CIS slab prices from the Black Sea region are estimated at $665-675/mt FOB as of today, up from $630-650/mt FOB in the first half of February.
In the Asian market, the latest deals from Russia were transacted at $645/mt CFR with the freight estimated at $15-20/mt. The supplier is currently evaluating the situation. In general, import slab prices in Southeast Asia may reach $680-690/mt CFR, sources assume.