Following the commencement of the new EU quota period, the sole Romanian rebar producer and local traders have raised their rebar prices. However, wire rod traders, who had raised prices in previous weeks, have kept their wire rod prices stable in the past week. Despite some gains in both segments in recent weeks, demand remains limited in the domestic market, and will likely be even slower in the current month owing to the upcoming Easter break.
“Although some increases are seen in the rebar market, demand is limited and will remain so since we have an Easter break at the end of the month, and, as always, the market will be dull for at least a week before and after,” a trader told SteelOrbis
As a result, this week's offers from Romania's sole rebar producer have risen to €590-605/mt ex-works, up from €580-590/mt ex-works the week before. Similarly, most Romanian rebar traders have increased their offers week on week to roughly €600-605/mt ex-warehouse, up from €590-605/mt ex-warehouse.
As for the wire rod market, most traders have quoted stable offers week on week, at €595-600/mt ex-warehouse.
On the other hand, in the import market, while the majority of offers have remained stable since the start of the new quota period, the majority of Romanian buyers do not expect significant purchases due to the anticipated weak demand over the coming weeks, and also due to the significant stock replenishments done previously. As a result, rebar prices from Bulgaria have remained stable at around €610-620/mt CPT. Similarly, Egypt has kept its rebar and wire rod prices unchanged at €550-555/mt CPT and €560-565/mt CPT, respectively. Furthermore, Greece's rebar and wire rod offers remain stable week on week, at €620-625/mt CFR and €610-615/mt CFR, respectively. In addition, Turkey's average rebar price has remained unchanged at €555-570/mt CFR Romania, based on a €1 = $1.08 exchange rate and freight costs of roughly €25-30/mt.