Trade activity in the import steel market in Bangladesh has remained weak this week, while most offers for imported scrap have shown a slight increase following the upturn in Turkey. As a result, only occasional deals have been reported at slightly higher prices this week, while other buyers kept refraining from purchases. At the same time, most market insiders remain rather negative in terms of future market developments with rebar sales expected to remain low until early next year.
Specifically, offers for ex-UK/EU shredded scrap in containers have been voiced at around $390/mt CFR, up by $5/mt over the past two weeks, while HMS I/II 80:20 scrap offers have been reported at around $370/mt CFR, up by $5-7/mt over the same period. According to sources, trade has remained limited with only occasional deals reported this week. In particular, a several deals have been reportedly signed for ex-Hong Kong PNS scrap at around $407/mt CFR, while around 4,000 mt in total of PNS scrap from Malaysia and Singapore have been booked at $395/mt CFR, according to sources.
Besides, a deal for 2,000 mt of ex-Hong Kong bundles HMS scrap has been signed at $350/mt CFR, while another deal for mixed PNS and HMS grade scrap from the UAE has been reported at $385/mt CFR.
In the meantime, offers for scrap in bulk have shown a slight increase as well this week, with ex-Australia HMS grade offers standing at $375/mt CFR, up by $10/mt over the past two weeks. “There have been several rumours about bulk deals this week, for ex-Australia and ex-US HMS scrap, but nothing has been confirmed so far,” a market insider said.
“The market will continue to face challenges from oversupplied scrap inventories in Chattogram and tepid steel demand in Dhaka, making a recovery in the near future unlikely,” a mill’s representative told SteelOrbis.