Steel demand in Vietnam, similar to the situation in other Southeast Asian countries, is very slow and is still exerting pressure on import scrap quotations. Market players state that prices have some more room to decline, while they are monitoring the situation regarding the US Federal Reserve’s interest rates. “This is taking a toll everywhere. It also causes the Japanese to export at lower levels,” a source commented.
SteelOrbis has learned that an ex-Hong Kong deal for HMS I/II 50:50 scrap by bulk to Vietnam was closed at $383/mt CFR last week. This level is just slightly lower than the desired level of the buyers, which was around $390/mt CFR earlier in July. However, market players state that this week is very quiet and much lower prices can be achieved by buyers.
Following the Kanto tender that indicated a sharp decline in scrap export prices, Japanese H2 grade scrap is offered to Vietnam at $380/mt CFR today. There are some buyers that are interested in paying $370/mt CFR for this material. “There is a gap between offers and bids, hence there is still room for negotiations,” a source commented. Last week, Japanese sources reported that the winning price of the Kanto tender translated to $395-400/mt CFR Vietnam.
Ex-US West Coast containerized HMS I/II 80:20 scrap cargoes are offered at $365-370/mt CFR Vietnam, but buyers’ bids are at $350s/mt CFR. There are no big bulk offers heard this week. A Vietnamese source said, “I think the price is too low here [in Vietnam], and so suppliers are not interested [in offering bulk cargoes to Vietnam].”