New offers for shredded scrap in Pakistan have posted a slight increase this week, after weeks of declines, given the mounting bullishness in Turkey. However, most Pakistani buyers have remained inactive due to still weak demand in the construction sector amid heavy rainfall, with only occasional deals for small batches reported in the market.
Specifically, after a few deals for ex-UK shredded scrap in containers were reported at $440-445/mt CFR at the beginning of this week, new import offers of ex-UK shredded scrap to Pakistan have increased to $450-460/mt CFR. “Pakistani buyers are hesitating to book materials at higher levels as most steelmakers have remained cautious due to increased production costs given higher power tariffs coupled with letter of credit restrictions. However, some believe that the upcoming winter season will support a construction demand recovery,” a market insider told SteelOrbis.
Meanwhile, prices for 10-12 mm rebar of grade 60 in Pakistan have remained mainly unchanged, standing at PKR 218,000-221,000/mt ($939-952/mt) ex-works in Lahore, though the workable level has been reported at around 216,000/mt ($930/mt) ex-works.
All prices on Pakistani rupee basis include 17 VAT.
$1 = PKR 232.17