Demand in the Italian domestic merchant bar market is still low due to uncertainty about the future. Most players are worried that there could be new price corrections. In the meantime, the economic fundamentals for the market remain weak.
Customers are buying only to meet their needs and distributors are struggling with prices that now stand at €50/mt ($56/mt) ex-works, compared to €60-75/mt ($67-83/mt) one month ago. Even with the lower prices, transaction volumes have not increased.
A similar situation is reported for the export market, where buyers are extremely cautious and prices stand at an average level of €60/mt ($67/mt) delivered to customer.
*In the Italian market, price extras can vary in the range of €410-610/mt ($455-677/mt) for domestic sales and in the range of €410-620/mt ($455-688/mt) for foreign markets, depending on dimension and product.
€1 = $1,11