As the US shredded scrap prices came down in May, domestic billet prices followed suit and came down by the same amount.
Domestic billet prices came down approximately $40/mt in May to the current level of $575 to $585/mt ($521 to $531/nt). Billet supply continues to exceed billet demand. There is still plentiful billet supply in the market, while domestic billet demand is tepid. The slight uptick in billet demand that was observed last month is no longer seen in the market. Although demand on the US finished products market is improving, it has not created many billet purchasing activities yet, as re-rollers are buying conservatively and avoid carrying too much inventory.
International billet prices have also gone down approximately $60 to $70/mt from a month ago due to downward pricing trend for the finished products in both Turkey and Europe. Currently, CIS billet is in the range of $560 to $570/mt FOB and Turkish billet is offering at $565 to $575/mt FOB.
Total billet imports into the US in the first half of May (as of May 18, 2010) were 11,750 mt, representing a decrease of 8,546 mt when compared to the figure of 20,296 mt in April. The main countries that exported billet to the US during the period were Canada, at 5,858 mt and Mexico, at 4,897 mt. Brazil and United Kingdom also exported a smaller amount of billet to the US during the corresponding period.
The latest USITC data show that the total amount of US carbon billet exported in the month of March 2010 was 9,277 mt, which represents a large decline of 10,970 mt when compared to the figure in February and a significant decrease of 19,663 mt when compared to the corresponding period a year ago. The main countries that imported US carbon billet in March were: Taiwan, at 6,882 mt; Peru, at 1,000 mt; Canada, at 476 mt; and Singapore, at 458 mt. Other countries that imported smaller amounts of US carbon billet include Argentina, Mexico and Dominican Republic.