Ferrous scrap prices for the US West Coast (USWC) export market remained unchanged on Wednesday, as Asian scrap demand has remained stagnant. Some contacts believe the bearish trend in Asia is seasonal and will recover; they point to a historical period between June and August, with the latest soft periods extending into October. They also note that higher summer energy costs, along with rainy seasons in several Southeast Asian countries, affect steel demand and scrap consumption.
Exporters have not decreased their prices since scrap flows remain adequate, yet not generous. In Los Angeles, the price of HMS I remains at $250-260/gt delivered export yard, while P&S 5ft sits at $270/gt delivered, and shredder feed at $200-210/gt delivered. San Francisco Bay Area prices have also been unchanged at $245-255/gt delivered, P&S 5ft at $265/gt delivered, and shredder feed at $195-205/gt delivered.
Last week, the Vietnamese scrap import market was reported by SteelOrbis as sluggish due to the rainy season. And even though it trended flat, possible price decreases could be seen for this week. Some contacts in the USWC believe that even the softer Turkish scrap import market could influence Asian import prices to contract.
In Houston, prices for HMS I remained unchanged at $340-345/gt delivered export yard, while for P&S 5ft they were flat at $350-360/gt delivered, and also unchanged for shredder feed at $310-330/gt delivered. In the Pacific Northwest (PNW), contacts reported on Wednesday also a sideways trend for bulk scrap prices for the export market, the price of HMS I settled at $290/gt delivered Portland-Tacoma ports, P&S 5ft at $300/gt delivered, and shredder feed at $225-235/gt delivered. There were rumors of a possible $5/gt decrease in prices to the Tacoma docks late last week yet they have not been confirmed by contacts in the PNW as of Wednesday.
Containerized
Ferrous containerized scrap prices on the USWC continue to fall. Even after last week, the price of HMS I/II 80:20 decreased by $5/mt on Wednesday, there were almost immediate reports the next day that the latest deals had already fallen another $5/mt. The price fell last Wednesday to $335/mt FAS Long Beach port and dropped to $330/mt FAS on Thursday. P&S ft also contracted by $5/mt to $345-350/mt FAS port, while shredded decrease.
And this week, the story is similar, with some exporters already bidding for HMS I/II 80:20 at $325/mt FAS port. Sellers are wary that exporters will try to push prices as low as possible and that the market is still far from seeing the bottom. San Francisco Bay Area containerized prices are $5/mt below their Southern California counterparts.
As containerized prices keep dropping in the USWC, rumors have emerged of some suppliers resisting selling at these lower levels, with the hopes of stopping the downward slide.
As reported by SteelOrbis last week, the Taiwanese scrap import market has remained sluggish due to soft rebar sales. The rainy season in Taiwan has impacted construction activity. Offers from USWC for HMS I/II 80:20 dropped to $353-357/mt CFR Taiwan from $358-361/mt CFR the week prior; actual sales were confirmed at $350/mt CFR, $5/mt lower than the week before. Japanese suppliers are out of the market.
