Bids for imported billet in Southeast Asia have declined again this week after just a slight increase previously. First of all, the negative sentiment in the Chinese market early this week with iron ore falling below the $110/mt CFR mark has been impacting the billet market. Also, some traders have resumed offering in short positions, reflecting the bad outlook. However, with futures in China rebounding on Thursday, June 6, no lower offers have been seen in the market compared to those reported early this week.
The SteelOrbis reference price for imported 5SP and 3SP billet has been at $505-520/mt CFR, with the average level of $512.5/mt CFR, decreasing by $7.5/mt on average over the past week.
In the Philippines, offers for ex-Asia billet have been reported at $515-520/mt CFR this week, down by $5/mt from deals reported last week. Moreover, “buyers are now waiting for $510/mt CFR,” a trader said. Also, in addition to Asian offers, a Russian supplier has been offering at $515/mt CFR Manila, but there has been no information about a deal being done.
In Indonesia and Thailand, the lowest offers have been reported for ex-China 3SP billet at $505-507/mt CFR and market sources have said that they may attract some customers. These offers are in a short position as the official FOB price from China stands at $490-500/mt at the moment. However, some buyers, seeing aggressive offers, have lowered their bids to $500/mt CFR.
Offers from traders for Iranian billet have been heard at $510/mt CFR to Indonesia and $505-510/mt CFR to Thailand, moving down from mainly $515/mt CFR last week.
