Pig iron producers in the Southeastern Brazil state of Minas Gerais are closing deals for the export of the steelmaking grade product in a range of $320/mt to $330/mt, FOB conditions, equivalent to $345/mt to $355/mt CFR conditions to US East coast ports, a price range stable from last week.
The nodular grade product is currently negotiated in a price range of range of $360/mt to $370/mt FOB, also stable from last week.
Sources tell SteelOrbis that there has been no impact so far on demand or prices for pig iron exports due to current problems in China.
In January, Brazil exported 198,800 mt of pig iron, compared to 320,600 mt in December, a decline ascribed to the heavy rains in the states of Minas Gerais and Espirito Santo in January, which have reportedly forced the postponement of shipments to February.
All the January pig iron exports were from the states in the southeastern and central western regions, having as main destinations Asia (78,100 mt at $286/mt), South America (45,200 mt at $295/mt), Mexico (31,100 mt at $282/mt) the US (28,000 mt at $274/mt) and the EU (15,900 mt at $351/mt), all FOB conditions, with different quality grades and price deals probably closed in November 2019.
