CIS suppliers are offering 125 x 125 mm to 150 x 150 mm steel billet to the Iranian market at $680-690/mt CFR Iranian northern port (Anzali) for production in August and shipment in September, down from $690-700/mt about four weeks ago and up from $670-680/mt about eight weeks ago. In fact, CIS suppliers have made several attempts to raise billet prices in last few months, however their price could not exceed $700/mt CFR level. The CIS suppliers' steel billet offers had reached the bottom in April this year, declining to $620-640/mt CFR. But since then, prices have been rising gradually in general.
Billet prices in Iran (CFR Iranian northern ports):
Jan 2011 |
$650-690/mt |
Feb 2011 |
$640-680/mt |
Mar 2011 |
$630-660/mt |
Apr 2011 |
$620-640/mt |
May 2011 |
$630-680/mt |
June 2011 |
$650-700/mt |
July 2011 |
$670-700/mt |
Local Iranian traders who import billet from the CIS have not changed so much their prices for ready stock billet during the last few months. Iranian traders are now offering ready-stock CIS origin billet of 125 x 125 mm to 150 x 150 mm sizes at about Rials 7.60- 7.70 million/mt ($717-726/mt) ex-stock Iranian northern ports, down from 7.70- 7.75 million/mt ($726-731/mt) four weeks ago. Ukrainian origin ready stock billet of 125 x 125 mm to 150 x 150 mm sizes is now in a price range of about Rials 7.50-7.55 million/mt ($708-712/mt) ex-stock Iranian southern port, down from Rials 7.6-7.7 million/mt ($717-726/mt) about four weeks ago. All prices include four percent VAT.
Iran, one of the main importers of steel in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, imported about 983,000 metric tons of semi-finished steel ( mainly billet ) in the first three months of the current Iranian year (started March 21), according to the Iranian customs authorities.
US$1 = Rials 10,600 (official market)