Over the past week, US scrap suppliers have continued to keep their distance from Taiwan as they find the current price levels in the country low. A source at a Taiwanese mill stated that ex-US offers to Bangladesh and India are at excessively high price levels, and so Taiwanese mills are also not bidding for ex-US cargoes. However, they have found themselves an alternative source, namely, Canada. Meanwhile, Japanese scrap offers to Taiwan have decreased slightly week on week, while bulk scrap quotations are considered to be more attractive as compared to US origin containerized material. According to a Taiwanese source, “The Taiwanese steel market has not performed great in the third quarter and, though a recovery in demand is possible in the fourth quarter, the energy problems in our region are taking a toll.” Also, the summer heat is causing electricity to be directed to households, impacting manufacturing. “This is not just our problem, from the EU to China, everyone is feeling it,” the source added.
As the US has not really been offering to Taiwan since the middle of last week, no deals have been done. Early last week, the price of ex-US HMS I/II 80:20 scrap in containers to Taiwan was at $338/mt CFR. However, as there is an increasing trend observed in offers from the US to Southeast Asia, the price targeted by the US in Taiwan would be much higher than buyers can accept.
Meanwhile, a Taiwanese mill has received offers from Canada for HMS I/II 80:20 scrap in containers at $360/mt CFR. “This is much lower than the idea of US suppliers. Hence, we prefer to work with the Canadians instead,” the source reported. As a result, the reference price for imported HMS I/II 80:20 scrap in containers in Taiwan has surged by $25-30/mt over the week to $360-365/mt CFR.
In the current week, prices for Japanese H1/2 50:50 scrap by bulk to Taiwan have indicated a slight decrease on the upper end from $375-390/mt to $375-385/mt in offers, both CFR. Last week, market players thought that these levels were high, but after the Kanto tender and Hyundai Steel’s increased bids for Japanese scrap, resistance is observed to have disappeared.
Domestic HMS I/II 80:20 scrap prices in Taiwan have increased by TWD 400/mt or $12/mt to TWD 9,500/mt ($316/mt) ex-works. The official domestic rebar prices in Taiwan have also increased, by TWD 400/mt or $12/mt week on week to TWD 19,000/mt ($632/mt) ex-works.
$1 = TWD 30.06