Italy’s domestic scrap market stable amid negative global sentiment

Domestic scrap prices in Italy have remained mostly stable. The silence in Turkey’s import scrap market is one of the reasons, while the finished steel market in Italy is also weak. An Italian source commented, “If the downward correction in Turkey lasts longer, this will influence our market. Sentiment regarding the local Italian scrap market was strong 10-15 days ago, but with the change in Turkey the expectation has also changed.”

As SteelOrbis has reported earlier this week, a German seller concluded a deal for E1 grade scrap at €415/mt delivered to Italy. The freight was €58/mt. Today, March 31, SteelOrbis has learned that another German sub-collector received bids from Belgium for HMS I/II 70:30 scrap at €360/mt DAP, for HMS I/II 80:20 scrap at €370/mt and bonus grade scrap at €380/mt DAP. “While scrap flow to sub-collectors accelerated over the past week, demand coming out of ports is not that great,” a source reported.

Overall, the sentiment in the EU region is still negative, all parties are monitoring the developments in Turkey closely. The scrap price trends in both Italy and the EU will depend on Turkish mills’ appetite for deep sea scrap in the coming week as international finished steel demand is underperforming not only in Turkey and the EU but in Asia too.

As a result, SteelOrbis’ range of reference prices for local scrap prices in Italy are revised as below:

Prices include delivery and exclude VAT.