Italian scrap prices on the rise in the last December negotiations

According to SteelOrbis’ information, the latest negotiations in the local scrap market in Italy have been concluded at levels higher by €5-10/mt than the previous prices reported. Although scrap requests at the end of the month are low and the volumes traded are not so significant, buyers with urgent needs have agreed to the higher price levels.

The reasons for these increases mainly lie in the reduction of scrap availability and the urgency to acquire volumes before winter closures. In general, however, the market is slowing down due to seasonal factors, with several market players reporting delays in December deliveries (which have been postponed to January), especially when involving scrap originating from neighboring countries such as Germany, where the logistical issue continues to weigh on both the local market and the export market by land.

Expectations for the beginning of the year in the local scrap market in Italy see several scrap traders and producers expecting further increases in scrap prices with the first requests in January, in the wake of the higher levels observed in recent weeks and of the consequences of the implementation of the CBAM regulation.

However, one source on the producers’ side is doubtful about the immediacy of a price increase at the beginning of the year, claiming that the effects of the new CBAM regulation coming into force from January 1, 2026 will only be seen in the medium to long term. The source’s doubts about a further increase in scrap prices in January are also based on the fact that most Italian mills will end December with high scrap inventories, and with the production stoppages - even long ones - planned for the winter holidays (December 24-January 6), the demand for scrap volumes in January could be lower than traders' expectations.

Moreover, according to confirmed information, an ex-US sea vessel with 30,000 mt of HMS and bonus scrap acquired by four different buyers is expected to arrive in Italy by the end of the year, and one source has reported that he has noticed a relevant increase in deep sea imports from Italy in the last year.

Overall, reference scrap prices in the Italian local market have marked some upward variations, as in the following table. It should be taken into account that the price ranges within the HMS category are €270-290/mt for E1 and €290-305/mt for E3.

Prices include delivery and exclude VAT.