Ferrous scrap prices to the US East Coast (USEC) remained unchanged in New York and Philadelphia for another week, as scrap generation remains solid and uncertainty persists around exports to Turkey. Sales activity in Turkey has been quiet due to the May 19 Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth, and Sports Day National Holiday. There is also the Eid al-Adha public holiday on May 27-30, additionally, geopolitical uncertainty derived from the US-Israel-Iran war continues. Despite this, export activity to Turkey could pick up as the country reportedly needs 20 cargoes for June shipment.
The price of HMS I to New York and Philadelphia docks remains at $280-290/gt delivered export yard, while shredder feed sits at $250-260/gt delivered.
Prices for HMS I in Boston climbed marginally according to contacts to $260-265/gt delivered from $255-265/gt delivered last week. Shredder feed at the Boston docks also improved, in this case more significantly, to $170-175/gt delivered from $155-165/gt delivered, the previous week, a $10-15/gt improvement for the grade as it tries to catch up with its counterpart in the rest of USEC.
Regarding the latest on the war, Pakistan has continued mediation efforts as US President Trump said on Tuesday, threatened another big attack on Iran, yet called it off at the request of the Gulf States, as peace negotiations continue.
In USEC, the May domestic scrap negotiating cycle increased prime grades by $20/gt to $450/gt delivered Philadelphia consumer. Obsolete grades, including HMS I and P&S 5ft, remained unchanged, providing further stability for the prices at the docks. In the case of HMS I, it remained at $350/gt delivered and P&S 5ft at $380/gt delivered.
Expectations for June are similar to May, according to participants, as they expect solid finished-steel prices to support prime-grade prices (along with a healthy pig-iron market), while obsoletes could remain sideways due to more generous flows. Contacts mention that flows could tighten once the summer's highest temperatures arrive. But in the meantime, they expect a couple of months of price stability in the domestic market.
