Having followed an upward trend since July last year, Japan’s Kanto scrap export tender in February has closed with another price increase. The total tonnage of the cargo sold is 20,000 mt, while it will be shipped to Bangladesh. Over the past month, the Japanese yen has moved from JPY 157.72 against the US dollar to JPY 153.6 as of today, February 11, with the result that the change in the dollar price in the tender is bigger than usual.
In the Kanto export tender, the highest bid was at JPY 48,083/mt ($313/mt) FAS, JPY 1,312/mt higher than last month. The dollar-based price has moved up by $7/mt from last month’s $296/mt FAS, taking into account the change in the exchange rate. The FAS-based price translates to JPY 49,083/mt FOB or $319/mt FOB, $16/mt higher as compared to last month.
Meanwhile, the scrap market price in the local Kanto area is still at JPY 44,000/mt ($286/mt) FAS, up by JPY 500/mt or $10/mt. As a result, the difference between the Kanto export and domestic scrap prices has increased to JPY 4,083/mt, from last month’s JPY 3,271/mt, with today’s gap standing at $27/mt.
