New offers for shredded scrap in Pakistan have posted a slight increase this week after weeks of declines, given the better sentiments mounting in Turkey. However, most Pakistani buyers have remained inactive due to the still weak demand in the construction sector, coupled with the political uncertainty in the country. Thus, only occasional deals for small batches have been reported in the market.
Specifically, after a few deals for ex-UK shredded scrap in containers were reported at $410-415/mt CFR at the end of last week and the beginning of this week, new import offers for ex-UK materials to Pakistan have increased to $425/mt CFR. “Although some believe that the upcoming winter season will support a construction demand recovery, for now Pakistani buyers are hesitating to book scrap at higher levels due to many factors, such as liquidity issues, political uncertainty and decreasing prices for local rebars,” a market insider told SteelOrbis.
In the meantime, this week local rebar manufacturer Mughal Steel has announced a decrease in prices for 10-12 mm rebar of grade 60 by PKR 4,000/mt ($18/mt) to PKR 201,000-203,000/mt ($896-905/mt) ex-works, given the weaker demand in the construction sector in Pakistan.
The prices for the local scrap equivalent to shredded have been voiced at PKR 128,000/mt ($570/mt) ex-warehouse, up by PKR 2,000/mt ($9/mt) week on week.
All prices in Pakistani rupee basis include 17 VAT.
$1 = PKR 224.42