Scrap prices in China weaken, import activity at a standstill

With a recent surge of positive Covid-19 cases in many regions in China, steel demand in the country has cooled down, affecting scrap trading. In particular, domestic scrap prices in China have decreased, with a transportation and supply-demand also being negatively affected. However, the supply shortage in the market may provide support in the near future. Meanwhile, import scrap offers are currently unworkable for China. In particular, while scrap prices in Japan continue to rise, with big support from both domestic and South Korean mills, the workable prices in China for import material have decreased by $10/mt over the past week to $530/mt CFR. 

Average domestic HMS scrap prices in China are at RMB 3,334/mt ($522.9/mt) ex-warehouse, increasing by RMB 3/mt compared to March 9, according to SteelOrbis’ information. 

Average scrap prices in China’s main markets are presented in the following table. 

$1 = RMB 6.38