Ex-Russia basic pig iron (BPI) prices have resumed their fall this week, even though scrap prices have stabilized in Turkey. The bearish sentiments in the global metallics market and the weak demand in most major destinations have been putting pressure on prices, even though exports have been unfavorable for most Russian mills due to the increased strength of the ruble against the US dollar.
The tradable level has dropped this week to $310-325/mt FOB for the Turkish market, while standing at $290-300/mt FOB at the highest for alternative markets like India. “Buyers are not ready to pay above $310/mt FOB,” one market source said. According to market reports, for small volumes producers may get $320-325/mt FOB Black Sea, for the Turkish market specifically. This level translates to $340-345/mt CFR. Some tonnages less than 30,000 mt of basic pig iron have been sold to Turkey at around $325/mt FOB or slightly above, but this price level has been assessed by market sources as rather high, considering very poor demand globally and falling bids.
Even though scrap prices in Turkey have been stable at $343-347/mt CFR this week, Turkish buyers have been waiting for discounts for Russian pig iron, understanding that major mills have had very limited sales over past weeks and are under inventory pressure. “In the Russian Federation, the margin is steadily negative,” a source said, but, since there no large production cuts have been announced so far, mills have high allocations for export.
Offers for high grade low-manganese and low-sulphur pig iron from Russia are still high and stable from last week - at $390/mt FOB - due to limited supply.
The SteelOrbis reference price for ex-Russia BPI has settled at $310-325/mt FOB Black Sea, with the midpoint at $317.5/mt FOB, moving down by $7.5/mt over the past week.