Vietnam’s appetite for import scrap ahead of the holiday season has remained limited this week. Vietnamese mills are expected to succeed in keeping prices stable for the rest of the year, market sources report.
Over the past week, ex-US bulk HMS I/II 80:20 scrap offers to Vietnam have remained stable at $350/mt CFR. “I think there will be no deals to Asia before the end of this year,” a source stated, while bids from buyers have also remained at around $340-345/mt CFR Vietnam.
Some market sources report that deals done by some Vietnamese buyers over the past week for Japanese H2 scrap purchases were closed at $325/mt CFR, relatively stable week on week. It has been heard that Japanese scrap suppliers have mostly remained out of the market this week, while other offers at $328-330/mt CFR Vietnam have failed to attract interest from buyers. Meanwhile, HS grade scrap offers from Japan to Vietnam were in the range of $355-360/mt CFR, but bids were only around $345/mt CFR. “Due to the sluggish downstream market for finished goods and sufficient scrap inventory in Vietnam, the buying indications have mostly remained unchanged. Most mills are in wait-and-see mode for now,” a source reported this week.
The Tokyo Bay FAS-based prices for H2 grade scrap have remained stable over the past two weeks at JPY 43,000/mt ($273/mt), down by $4/mt on dollar basis. The FOB-based export price remains at JPY 44,000/mt ($280/mt) for the grade in question, down by $3/mt.
The Tokyo Bay HS grade scrap prices have also moved sideways, at JPY 47,000/mt ($298/mt) FAS, down by $5/mt on US dollar basis over the past two weeks. However, the shindachi scrap prices is now JPY 500/mt higher at JPY 47,000/mt ($298/mt) FAS, down by $2/mt on US dollar basis.
$1 = JPY 157.28