The average transaction ranges for
US domestic
scrap prices have trended sideways into February, a trend that has been largely impacted by weak
scrap inflow into
scrap yards.
East coast January price points, which settled at approximately $167.64/mt ($165/gt) for HMS and $193.04/mt ($190/gt) for shredded
scrap, remained mostly neutral month-on-month for HMS, which is now trending at $162.56-$167.64/mt ($160-$165/gt). Prices for shredded
scrap, however, are down $10.16/mt ($10/gt), to $182.88/mt ($180/gt). Sources close to SteelOrbis say that although last month’s blizzard “didn’t do inflow any favors,” the downtrend in East coast
scrap prices is mostly due to light buying activity from mills in this region.
Ohio Valley HMS
scrap prices, which SteelOrbis reported settled at $162.56-$167.64/mt ($160-$165/gt) in January, have also remained steady. SteelOrbis has also confirmed that some transactions in this region were concluded at “levels slightly higher than the average price.”
Whether current price points will remain steady into March remains to be seen.
According to the most recent data from the American Iron and Steel Industry (AISI), for the week ending January 30, 2016, domestic raw steel production was 1,657,000 net tons while the capability utilization rate was 70.7 percent. This is up from slightly mid-January; for the week ending January 16, domestic raw steel production was 1,652,000 net tons while the capability utilization rate was 69.1 percent.
And while upticks in the capacity utilization rate are amply welcome, there are concerns that when temperatures throughout the
US begin to warm, which traditionally lends itself to increases in
scrap inflow, that
scrap prices could once again begin to falter.