Prices for imported billet in the import market in Southeast Asia have declined again this week as traders have continued to offer in short positions and negative sentiments have continued to prevail in China. Buyers are mainly in wait-and-see mode in a bearish market.
The SteelOrbis reference price for imported billet (3SP and 5SP) has been at $501-515/mt CFR, with the midpoint at $508/mt CFR, down by $4.5/mt on average over the past week.
The higher end of the range corresponds to the latest ex-Russia deal to the Philippines. Moreover, offers for ex-ASEAN and ex-China 5SP 150 mm billets to the country have been reported at $510-515/mt CFR, down by $5/mt over the past week. “Negotiations are at $510/mt CFR Manila for 5SP, but buyers are cautious, prices can go down more,” a local source said. Another source said that officially the main Indonesia mill (as well as the Vietnamese producer) has not dropped its offers, which were at $500/mt FOB last week, but the workable level is at $493/mt FOB. There have been no deals at this level reported so far. This level translates to $510-515/mt CFR SE Asia for sizable lots.
At the same time, offers for ex-China 3SP billet have been reported at $501-506/mt CFR to the region, mainly to Indonesia and Thailand, while last week the lower level for this origin was at $505/mt CFR. “If futures stabilize, we will see deals, but now buyers are mostly in wait-and-see mode,” a Singapore-based trader said. The latest ex-Iran offers have been at $505-510/mt CFR Thailand and Indonesia.