A deal for 50,000 mt of ex-Indonesia billet has been disclosed at $490/mt FOB as done this week for August shipment. The price is down by $5/mt from the previous level, held by the seller for over a week. According to a few sources, the lot was booked by the large steel mill “for their own consumption, not trading”. One trader added that earlier this producer has been importing only slabs from the Indonesian mill.
The tradable level for ex-ASEAN billet may go down slightly more and it is assessed at $485/mt FOB by market sources, based on the best traders’ bids at the moment. However, July shipment order books are full, sellers may not be active in pushing volumes and cutting prices at least for some time.
The mood in the Asian market has remained negative mainly due to weak demand in China and only some production cuts. The reference price for ex-China billet has slipped by $5/mt over the week to $475-485/mt FOB.
