Prices for ex-Russia billet have as expected ended the week lower, but overall the pace of the decrease has slowed down for now, given that many buyers have been inactive.
The SteelOrbis reference price for ex-Russia billet has settled at $590-620/mt FOB Black Sea on Friday, May 20, with the midpoint at $605/mt FOB, down by $10/mt on average from the previous day as the higher end of the range has slipped by $20/mt.
An offer at $630/mt FOB has been made to Egypt, translating to $680-690/mt CFR, according to sources. This is in line with the deal reported earlier this week to Egypt at $685/mt CFR for 20,000 mt. But customers from Egypt have been asking for further declines. In particular, negotiations have been reported at $670/mt CFR late this week with the freight from the Black Sea assessed at above $50/mt. Moreover, some bids have already slipped to $660/mt CFR or even below, which corresponds to $600-610/mt FOB.
Even lower levels for ex-Russia billets have been seen in the Turkish market, though it has been inactive late this week due to the holiday on Thursday. Buyers have been cautious in new orders while observing a significant decline in rebar offers for both local and export destinations and have been holding back their inquiries, contributing to the generally low demand. In addition, another decline in scrap prices has strengthened the expectation for a further drop in billet prices, especially from Russia, as dealing for material of this origin involves big risks. This week, import prices have declined by $15/mt to $630-640/mt CFR depending on the region and the supplier. Some buyers in Turkey believe $620/mt CFR is an achievable level, but the number of negotiations is reported to be low.