New offers for shredded scrap in Pakistan have remained mainly unchanged over the past week, though deal prices have continued to increase given the overall bullishness of foreign suppliers. Meanwhile, despite still weak finished steel sales in Pakistan, market insiders have reported more inquiries for import scrap in Pakistan considering better sentiment amid the continuous appreciation of the national currency against the dollar.
Accordingly, after shredded 211 scrap of UK and European origin was sold last week at $445/mt CFR to the Pakistan market, new deals have been reported at $453-455/mt CFR this week. In particular, according to market insiders, on Monday, October 3, a deal for 1,000 mt of ex-UK shredded scrap was signed at $453/mt CFR, while on Tuesday 2,500 mt of the material changed hands at $455/mt CFR. Meanwhile, new offers are standing at $450-460/mt CFR. “Demand is still very low, but new inquiries are coming as the Pakistani rupee is appreciating against the US dollar,” a local trader told SteelOrbis.
Notably, the Pakistani rupee had fallen close to an all-time low of PKR 239.94 on September 22. However, it has been on an uptrend since then, with its value improving by PKR 16 or 6.6 percent by October 5, according to the State Bank of Pakistan.
Meanwhile, prices for 10-12 mm rebar of grade 60 in Pakistan have decreased by around PKR 3,000-4,000/mt week on week to PKR 215,000-217,000/mt ($962-971/mt) ex-works. However, given the appreciation of the national currency, the prices on US dollar basis have increased by $19-23/mt over the past week.
All prices on Pakistani rupee basis include 17 VAT.
$1 = PKR 232.17