Influenced by recent deep sea purchases by Turkish producers, export prices for US scrap are once again trending upwards. Buoyed by the limited supply of scrap and strong domestic demand, the most recent ex-US deal to Turkey was for HMS I/II 80:20 scrap at $296/mt CFR, shredded scrap at $301/mt CFR, and bonus scrap at $306/mt. Turkish mills have remained active in scrap buys and have continued sourcing scrap material from the EU and Baltic regions. US exporters are hoping for additional deals as prices from those regions are also moving up. Offers Ex-US for HMS I/II 80:20 have breached the $300/mt CFR level.
These most recent Turkey transactions also provided a boost to the global scrap market, and have moved scrap prices up in several other destinations relevant to both US coasts.
As a prime illustration, import deals for containerized shredded scrap cargoes bound for India from non-US origin have increased by $5-10/mt to $270-275/mt CFR Nhava Sheva. As US offers have been considered too high, no Ex-US deals are known to have been concluded. Indian buyers have been continuously expressing the lack of ability to increase bids, but given the adoption of higher import scrap prices, US East coast dealers express hope that export business to this region may increase in the near future. Present offers for ex-US containerized shredded scrap to India are at $290-295/mt CFR Nhava Sheva. This price range reflects an increase of $20/mt from limited offers at $270-275/mt CFR reported by SteelOrbis on December 12.
According to a source close to SteelOrbis, "The present range is actually very reasonable for the Indian market despite recent economic woes. In early December 2014, scrap to Turkey was also hovering the $300/mt CFR levels. At that time, prices CFR Nhava Sheva were higher at about $320-330/mt."
On the West coast, exporters are also seeking higher prices as scrap prices in Asia have increased. Earlier this week, a South Korean mill booked a US origin cargo of approximately 40,000 mt of HMS I at $283/mt for February delivery, an increase of roughly $10-12/mt over the previous deal according to sources.
Current offer prices from exporters on the US West coast for HMS I to Vietnam are in the $290-295/mt CFR range. Offers for HMS I/II 80:20 headed to Taiwan are at $275-285/mt CFR. This price reflects an increase of $20/mt from $255-265/mt offers reported by SteelOrbis on December 13. Sources note offers are limited and environment shows high probability of continued upward mobility in scrap prices.