Prices for ex-Russia billet have declined again and settled below the $500/mt FOB mark due to the continuous price decline in Turkey and bearish sentiments.
Some offers for small lots of ex-Russia billet have been offered to Turkey at $525/mt CFR for December shipment, down by $10/mt from the level heard earlier this week. This is almost the same level that was earlier offered to Turkey from Asia but for large lots and with longer lead times. Nevertheless, buyers are almost out of the market and some sources said that they are waiting for $500/mt CFR for imported billet, following the further decline in scrap prices. “But will the Russian Federation sell at such prices? That is a big question,” a source said, adding that production costs may not allow mills to go much lower.
The SteelOrbis reference price has been cut to $485-490/mt FOB on November 11, which is $7.5/mt on average below the level yesterday and down $10-15/mt over the past week.
