In the UAE, progressively growing demand has caused rebar prices to rise, and Emirati suppliers predict that monthly rebar consumption in the UAE will approach or maybe surpass 200,000-250,000 mt. Nevertheless, according to some market players, owing to price improvements, several traders did not make fresh purchases and continued to sell their stocks.
“The majority of the stocks in the market are from ESA, and traders must carry forward these stocks from ESA. Prices have risen, and so customers want to sell stocks first, but customers should understand that the new cost of billet will be much higher,” one Oman exporter told SteelOrbis
As previously reported by SteelOrbis, towards the end of February, official offers for rebar produced by the local manufacturer Emirates Steel Arkan (ESA) for March production were increased to $691/mt (AED 2,544/mt) delivered to Abu Dhabi and $693/mt (AED 2,537/mt) delivered to Dubai. Likewise, Arabian Gulf Steel followed the same price trend, while another producer Conares has not yet announced its offers.
Furthermore, according to market sources, retailers' current feasible levels in the UAE for ESA origin material are at AED 2,520/mt ($686/mt) CPT, and for non-ESA materials are at AED 2,450-2,470/mt ($667-672/mt) for 90-day LC payment, up from AED 2,300-2,310/mt ($626-628/mt).
Meanwhile, the situation in Oman has evolved similarly. The most recent ex-Oman rebar offers to the UAE have been given at AED 2,420-2,450/mt ($658-667/mt) CPT for 90-day letters of credit, up from AED 2,335-2,350/mt ($635-640/mt) CPT in the previous month.
$1 = AED 3.67
$1 = OMR 0.3845