Iranian steel producers have successfully found buyers for a couple of more billet cargoes to be sold on abroad later. However, despite some billet price rebound in Asia, the general market mood globally has remained pessimistic and buyers have insisted on considerable discounts from Iranian mills.
According to sources, a 10,000 mt billet lot has lately been sold at $455/mt FOB for August-September shipments. Another 30,000 mt billet lot has been sold at $462/mt FOB. However, the material has a higher Mn content and so the price includes a certain extra. The previous ex-Iran billet sales were closed at $470-473/mt FOB, which means there is a price decrease of roughly $15-20/mt over the past week.
Although the mentioned deal prices of $455-462/mt FOB are considered workable for several markets, most local market players assume the cargoes will be directed to Asia where the market is slightly better. Taking into account the freight of around $45/mt, “the price of $500/mt CFR is considered to be a good one.” The FOB level could also be workable in the GCC, but the buyers over there seem to be not so active in billet purchases due to season-related low construction and consequently low domestic demand for longs.