Prices for imported slabs in Asia have continued to increase over the past week as the allocation in the market has been limited and HRC prices in the region have continued to follow the uptrend. But for now, offers for slabs have risen more rapidly than bids from the majority of customers.
Most offers for imported slabs have increased sharply to $600/mt CFR and above, with a lack of firm offers available in the market. As SteelOrbis reported early last week, the latest deal from Russia to Taiwan was at $540/mt CFR, but suppliers, seeing sharp increases in the flat steel market, have continued to hike offers, expecting the next contracts at much higher prices.
At the same time, customers in Southeast Asia have been reluctant to react fast. The tradable price level for imported slabs in Indonesia is at $540-550/mt CFR, one of the major buyers in the country told SteelOrbis. “Current prices [for imported slabs] are too high. The Indonesian market is not increasing at the same pace,” a source said. According to sources, there has been no information regarding the latest tender for slab purchases being finally closed, due to the big gap between offers and bids.
Bids for slabs for Chinese importers have also been heard at a low level for the majority of suppliers - below $550/mt CFR.
A few traders agreed that it is almost impossible to find any offers at $550/mt CFR for imported slabs and customers will have to accept higher price levels, taking into account the continued uptrend in the HRC segment. The average deal price for imported HRC in Vietnam has reached $639/mt CFR, according to SteelOrbis’ information, surging by $24-29/mt over the past week. The tradable value for HRC is equivalent to a minimum of $640/mt in the Indonesian market as well.
Considering recent offers and bids for slabs and the recent increase in the HRC market, the SteelOrbis reference price for imported slabs in Asia has increased to $570-580/mt CFR, up by $30-40/mt since last week. The price level is indicative as a new deal is awaited for the new price level to be settled.
