Japanese scrap exporters have raised their prices sharply this week, seeing firm demand from Southeast Asian customers and better consumption in their local market, while scrap collection has not increased.
The latest deals for H2 scrap have been signed at JPY JPY 24,500-25,000/mt ($223-228/mt) FOB this week, up JPY 500/mt ($4.6/mt) from a week ago, while offers have already been voiced starting from JPY 25,000/mt FOB and above. Some small tonnage was sold to South Korea at the lower end of the range early this week, while most of the support has come from Vietnam.
The latest deals for H2 scrap have been signed at $260/mt CFR south Vietnam and $265/mt CFR north Vietnam. Also, some tonnages of H1/2 50:50 have been traded at $260-265/mt CFR south Vietnam. “There are no offers [for H2 scrap in south Vietnam] below $265/mt CFR,” a seller told SteelOrbis today, Friday, June 5.
Today, Tokyo Steel announced its third local scrap purchase price increase this week, raising its prices by JPY 500-1,000/mt ($4.6-9.2/mt), while over the whole week they have surged by JPY 1,500-3,000/mt ($14-27/mt).
The steel producer’s prices for H2 scrap have increased by JPY 1,000/mt for its Kyushu and Utsunomiya factories to JPY 22,500/mt ($205/mt) and JPY 23,000/mt ($210/mt), respectively. Its prices for the other facilities - Tahara, Okayama and Takamatsu - have added JPY 500/mt and reached JPY 23,500/mt ($214/mt), JPY 21,000/mt ($192/mt) and JPY 20,000/mt ($182/mt), delivered, respectively. All prices are effective starting from June 6.