Italian scrap price uptrend limited somewhat by output halts

The Italian scrap market has also been evaluating the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict lately. Local prices have increased by further slight margin over the past two weeks, as had been expected before the outbreak of the war, amid good demand and price rises in the international market. More recently, the uptrend has been cooling down a little due to some local mills temporarily halting their plants due to high costs and the lack of raw material supplies which previously were received from the CIS. One source underlined that the Pittini Group temporarily stopped production twice this week, while another long steel producer is expected to do the same this weekend. "The tension regarding scrap prices is being dampened somewhat by a few small stoppages that are more instrumental than really necessary in my opinion," the same source commented. However, all sources keep believing that domestic scrap prices may increase significantly in the coming weeks, "especially considering what is already happening in Turkey." The main unknowns influencing the market are energy prices and the impact of the ongoing war, one source said.

Currently, average spot prices in the local Italian scrap market are as follows: