Iranian billet prices have declined under the threat of the second phase of US sanctions, effective Nov. 4, which will begin to affect the banking, insurance and shipping sectors. A source noted the steep shipments expected prior to that date but also the hesitation from some buyers who do not wish to be caught “in a bad situation due to perceived violations per US sanctions.”
A source reports billet export offers from Iran at $445-455/mt FOB. The decline in FOB prices in the past few months is listed in table below.
The three largest importers of Iranian billet in the first five months of the present Persian year (March 21-August 22) were the UAE, Egypt, and Thailand. Both the UAE and Egypt increased their imports by 315 percent (432,626 mt vs. 137,265 mt in same period last year) and 414 percent (310,363 mt vs. 75,019 mt in same period last year), respectively. Thailand, on the other hand, declined its imports by 47 percent (200,031 mt vs 378,256 mt in the same period last year). According to ISPA data, Iran exported 1,417,000 mt of billet in the five-month period in 2018, up almost 13 percent compared to 1,258,000 mt in the same period the previous year.
Khouzastan Steel Company (KSL) was the largest billet exporter in the period followed by South Kaveh Steel Company (SKSC).
| Iranian Billet export | US$ |
| Offers, early each month | FOB |
| Jul | $490-500/mt |
| Aug | $490-500/mt |
| Sep | $460-470/mt |
| Oct | $450-455/mt |