The main EAF-based steel producer in Japan, Tokyo Steel, has announced another cut in local scrap procurement prices amid still slow demand in the local market and Asia in general, even though there are some signs of the Turkish market rebounding. The producer has reduced scrap prices for all its plants by JPY 500/mt.
Tokyo Steel’s general range for H2 grade scrap has come to JPY 45,500-47,000/mt ($322-332/mt) depending on the mill. The depreciation of the Japanese currency has resulted in an even bigger decline in dollar price equivalents, as they have lost $8-9/mt this time, while the previous correction was on November 17.
The shindachi scrap prices of Tokyo Steel are now in the range of JPY 47,500-48,500/mt ($336-343/mt), down $8/mt from the previous levels. All prices in question are delivered and effective as of November 25. Exchange rate fluctuations are taken into consideration when calculating the dollar-based price changes.
Though demand for scrap in Japan had already declined in previous weeks, this week news about lower steel production during the winter months, linked to energy shortages, has started to emerge. The central government issued an “electricity supply shortage warning” early this week, asking people in the Tokyo area to use less electricity. Also, according to market sources, there are unofficial calls for manufacturers to lower energy usage.
|
Plant |
H2 |
Shindachi |
||
|
Price (JPY/mt) |
Price change (JPY /mt) |
Price (JPY/mt) |
Price change (JPY/mt) |
|
|
Tahara |
46,500 |
-500 |
47,500 |
-500 |
|
Nagoya |
46,000 |
-500 |
- |
- |
|
Okayama |
46,500 |
-500 |
48,500 |
-500 |
|
Kyushu |
46,500 |
-500 |
48,500 |
-500 |
|
Utsunomiya |
47,000 |
-500 |
48,500 |
-500 |
|
Takamatsu |
45,500 |
-500 |
47,500 |
-500 |
$1 = JPY 141.38