A rather clear trend is emerging in the Italian scrap market this week. Confirming the absence of significant trading activity, mills appear to sending the message that they have no willing to buy.
According to reports from scrap traders, producers’ price lists have seen further reductions this week, ranging from €10/mt to €25-30/mt depending on previous base prices. However, this trend seems only nominal. Mills are buying negligible volumes, some of them are already slowing down or halting operations for summer, while others have suspended, or partially suspended, scrap withdrawals.
“The situation is worse than compared to the same period last year,” one market source commented, while another said he was expecting further declines ahead of summer stoppages, as “scrap inflows are regular, but supply currently exceeds demand.”
At present, steel producers are pursuing different strategies: some are lowering purchase prices, while others prefer to step back from the market while awaiting further developments.
Meanwhile, the first indications regarding summer stoppages are emerging. As mentioned, some plants have already halted production, others will stop around July 20 or from the end of July until the end of August.
As for imports, scrap purchases from foreign suppliers seem to have declined by €10-15/mt for now, though it will be necessary to wait until mid-July to identify a clearer trend.
Regarding average scrap price levels in Italy, decreases were between €5/mt and €10/mt, as shown in the table below. It should be noted that, within the HMS category, E1 scrap stands at €280-290/mt, while E3 is at €300-325/mt.
| Quality | Average spot price (€/mt) | Average spot price (€/mt) |
| Period | July 1 | June 25 |
| Turnings (E5) | 290-300 | 300-310 |
| HMS (E1/E3) | 280-325 | 290-330 |
| Shredded (E40) | 330-345 | 330-345 |
| Busheling (E8) | 330-345 | 335-345 |
Prices include delivery and exclude VAT.
