As the Asian market has entered the Lunar New Year holiday period, only a few new deals have been done with prices almost remaining stable. The holiday will end on January 30, but the estimations for the future price trend are positive. Market players report that finished steel demand and prices are set to recover slightly. A source said, “We expect scrap demand to increase after the holiday.” Also, China is expected to make a positive return, while Covid-19 epidemic in the country is expected to be under control in the short term.
Recent deals for ex-US HMS I/II 80:20 scrap in containers to Taiwan were in the range of $405/mt CFR, with a slight decline observed on the upper end of the $405-410/mt CFR range reported early this week. Offer prices for this grade are still higher than $410s/mt CFR Taiwan, but Taiwanese mills rejected the higher offers ahead of the holiday. “I am not saying that this is the peak of prices. We think there is some more room for them to move up after the holiday,” a source at a Taiwanese mill added.
Moreover, deals for Japanese H1/2 50:50 scrap by bulk to Taiwan were in the range of $425-430/mt CFR, increasing from the deals closed at $410/mt in the week ended on January 6. Earlier this week, offers for this grade were at $420-440/mt CFR Taiwan, but since then offers have also increased to $435-460/mt CFR. “This offer range is a very expensive level for us,” a source at a Taiwanese mill reported.
Also, as Vietnamese mills have already closed ex-US West Coast bulk cargo deals above $430/mt CFR, the suppliers will target above $440/mt CFR in the new round of bookings, and so prices are also expected to move up in Vietnam after the holiday.