The scrap price in the monthly Kanto Tetsugen scrap export tender in Japan has posted some slight increase, in line with market players’ expectations. Nevertheless, the trading volume has been lower than usual because of slow demand from the majority of Asian customers.
On June 9, the monthly Kanto Tetsugen scrap export tender in Japan was closed at JPY 49,195/mt ($450/mt) FAS for one lot of 7,500 mt of H2 scrap. This price is slightly up by JPY 354/mt ($3/mt) from last month’s average price in the auction.
Market sources believe that this lot will be shipped to Vietnam, but it is still unclear. Market sources agree that the lower volume sold under the tender (usually 15,000-20,000 mt) reflects slow demand in Asia at the moment. The construction steel market in Vietnam has been hit by rising infection cases in the country, putting pressure on raw material demand. Buyers in Taiwan still prefer to buy from the US, giving the difference with ex-Japan prices.
The FAS prices in the Kanto auction translate to JPY 50,195/mt ($459/mt) FOB. Nevertheless, most buyers even after some improvement in bids have been insisting on not higher than JPY 47,000-48,500/mt ($430-444/mt) FOB for H2 scrap from Japan.
The SteelOrbis reference price for ex-Japan H2 scrap has been increased to JPY 47,000-50,000/mt ($430-457/mt) FOB, while the lower end of the range has added JPY 1,000/mt ($9/mt) and the higher end is up JPY 3,500/mt ($32/mt) week on week.