On June 22, SteelOrbis reported a South Korean steelmaker increasing their bid price for H2 scrap to JPY 26,000/mt ($234/mt) FOB Tokyo Bay, with export offers heard at JPY 27,000-28,000/mt ($243-252/mt) FOB Tokyo Bay.
On July 5, sources inform SteelOrbis that Japanese H2 has been booked by South Korean mills at prices up JPY 500 to JPY 26,500/mt ($234/mt) FOB Tokyo Bay or approximately JPY 29,000/mt ($256/mt) CFR South Korea. Due to freight rate increases and currency exchange fluctuations, the dollar FOB price remains stable with the price reported two weeks ago. Vietnamese mills have also reportedly purchased Japanese H2 scrap at a steady level of $270-273/mt CFR Vietnam over the past two weeks.
Taiwanese mills, on the other hand, are reportedly on the sidelines for the moment regarding import purchases of Japanese H2 scrap. This week, ex-US containerized HMS I/II 80:20 scrap has been purchased at $255/mt CFR Taiwan.
Active bids for Japanese H2 scrap from South Korean mills continue being heard at JPY 26,000-26,500/mt ($230-234/mt) FOB Tokyo Bay. With export collection prices at JPY 25,500-26,000/mt ($225-230/mt) FAS and domestic Japanese mills reportedly purchasing H2 scrap at JPY 26,000-26,500/mt ($230-234/mt) delivered, sources report that exporters continue seeking export deals at JPY 27,000-28,000/mt ($238-247/mt) FOB Tokyo Bay. This offer range reflects a loss of $5/mt compared to offers two weeks ago due to currency exchange fluctuations.
According to a source, the domestic Japanese scrap market may soften due to upcoming maintenance schedules at Japanese mills in July and August. This in effect may result in a downward adjustment in domestic mill purchase prices and export collection prices which may give foreign mills the opportunity to place some short-term pressure on export pricing. Although, the strong global scrap and raw material prices presently in the market may work to counter this pressure.
$1=JPY 111.27, 6/22/2017
$1=JPY 113.25, 7/5/2017