Local German scrap prices decline again in October

The situation in the local German scrap market has not changed much in terms of prices in October compared to the previous month, although all grades registered some slight declines.

According to some sources, due to lower consumption rates even the mills that were not supposed to stop for maintenance are now closing in order to reduce production. With scrap procurement prices dropping and finished steel prices on the low side, German producers - who were already struggling with sales - decided to cut production rates in order to maintain decent margins.

With Turkey’s ex-Europe scrap purchase prices dropping to $358/mt CFR for HMS I/II 80:20, the Europeans will likely reduce their scrap price levels. Since steel demand is not strong enough to support a recovery in scrap prices in the local German market, they are expected to move down further in November.

According to the latest data provided by the Bundesvereinigung Deutscher Stahlrecycling-und Entsorgungsunternehmen e.V, in the first 20 days of October, scrap prices in Germany moved down by €0.1-9.0/mt month on month. The annual variation, instead, saw a decline ranging from €2.5/mt to €34.9/mt, except for E5 grade, the price of which instead rose by €4.6/mt year on year.

The prices are provided by Bundesvereinigung Deutscher Stahlrecycling-und Entsorgungsunternehmen e.V. and are average prices for domestic transactions across Germany in the first 20 days of the given month.

Specifications:

E1 - Old steel scrap: thickness ≥ 4 mm, maximum dimensions 1,5 m x 0,5 m x 0,5 m
E2/E8 - New steel scrap: maximum dimensions 1,5 m x 0,5 m x 0,5 m
E3 - Heavy old steel scrap: thickness ≥ 6 mm, maximum dimensions 1,5 m x 0,5 m x 0,5 m
E40 - Shredded scrap: excluding incinerator steel scrap and collection scrap; density ≥ 1,1 mt/m3, Fe ≥ 92%
E5M - Turnings: excluding iron and automatic steel turnings