This week, numerous small scrap buyers in Bangladesh have kept facing difficulties in securing letters of credit (LCs) and have been running below capacity amid subdued market demand, while bulk trade volumes have remained minimal. At the same time, offers for containerized scrap have continued to be mostly stable over the past week, with occasional deals reported with slight discounts.
More specifically, according to sources, while most offers for shredded scrap from the EU and Australia have been voiced at $380/mt CFR, mainly the same as last week, a deal for around 1,000 mt of ex-Australia shredded scrap has been signed at $378/mt CFR. Besides, another transaction for ex-Australia HMS I/II 80:20 scrap has been heard at $360/mt CFR, the same as last week.
Furthermore, offers for PNS scrap from Hong Kong have been voiced at $390-395/mt CFR, with several deals reported to have been signed at the abovementioned levels. “Hong Kong PNS is sold at higher prices due to the short voyage,” a Bangladeshi trader told SteelOrbis.
Meanwhile, in the bulk segment, Bangladeshi producers have hesitated to engage in new deals, constrained by climbing deep sea freight rates, thinning rebar margins, and sluggish construction activity in key regions across the country. Market participants indicate that viable prices for bulk HMS I/II 80:20 cargoes from the US West Coast hovered at around $372–375/mt CFR, compared to $370/mt CFR reported last week.
“Despite the indicated levels, significant buying interest has been lacking, as additional tonnage from the US East Coast to Turkey tempered buyer motivations,” a market insider told SteelOrbis.