Traders have been actively seeking ex-ASEAN billet offers this week, trying to take positions for further sales either inside the region (in SE Asia and Taiwan) or to the MENA region, as shortages will persist due to the halting of supplies from Ukraine and uncertainty regarding future sales from Russia.
A deal for 20,000 mt of ex-Vietnam BF billet has been done at $730/mt FOB for April shipment to a trader seeking a position. Some sources believe that this material could be offered to Turkey, Europe or other countries in the MENA region, given the strong dependence on Ukrainian materials there and uncertainties over trading of ex-Russia billet in the future.
Some sources believe that this material could also go somewhere “inside the region in Asia as Taiwan will suffer from the lack of Russian billet,” a source said.
The major Indonesian producer has not announced its new price today either: yesterday people had been expecting Dexin Steel to return with $720/mt FOB, but no new offer has been heard yet. The current freight inside in the ASEAN region has been assessed at $35-40/mt, much higher than $20-25/mt before Russia started the war.
A Malaysian producer is not in the billet market either and “they will most probably focus on wire rod exports, at higher prices of course,” a source from Singapore said.