After moving down last month, the Kanto scrap export tender in Japan was closed with a price increase on March 11. The upward revision of the price largely surpassed the drop recorded in February. While the Japanese scrap export price has moved up by $16/mt this month, the fall recorded last month was just $3/mt. The cargo is believed to consist of 15,000 mt, with the buyer being a steel producer in Bangladesh, SteelOrbis hears.
In the Kanto export tender, the highest bid was at JPY 44,226/mt FAS, JPY 1,026/mt higher than last month. The dollar-based price has increased from $281/mt to $297/mt FAS, taking into account exchange rate changes. The FAS price translates to JPY 45,226/mt FOB or $304/mt FOB, up $7/mt as compared to last month amid exchange rate volatility.
Meanwhile, the local market prices in the Kanto area are still at around JPY 40,000/mt ($269/mt) FAS, stable on Japanese yen basis month on month but up by $8/mt on US dollar basis since then as the yen has appreciated. As a result, the difference between the Kanto export and domestic scrap prices has increased to JPY 4,226/mt or $28/mt. In February, this gap between export and domestic scrap prices in Kanto was at JPY 3,200/mt or $20/mt with the yen-dollar exchange rate being at $1 = JPY 153.51.
$1 = JPY 269.97
