Prices for containerized ferrous scrap at the US West Coast (USWC) docks softened on the lower end of their ranges this week as East Asian scrap demand has become more uncertain.
In the USWC, the price of containerized HMS I/II 80:20 fell by $7/mt to $345/mt FAS Long Beach port, as this week, no deals could be confirmed at the previous $352/mt FAS level, while most reported seeing transactions at $345/mt FAS. Shredded softened to $365-370/mt FAS port, while containerized #1 busheling is reported down by $5/mt to $370/mt FAS port. San Francisco Bay Area prices sit $5/mt below Southern Californian prices.
Vietnamese demand remains solid, and USWC participants have reported Vietnamese buyers in the market seeking US-origin HMS I/II 80:20 and #1 busheling material.
Some of the Asian scrap demand seems to have become shaky in the past few days. In India, SteelOrbis reported that scrap purchasing has stalled as secondary mills have been submitting very low bids due to lower finished steel prices for the domestic market. Last week, Taiwanese demand for imported scrap was relatively stable, although Japanese sellers returned to the market, adding more material for the US to compete with.
Ocean freight rates for containers are reported from the USWC at $15/mt CFR Taiwan. For bulk material, this week the higher rates are reported to be at the $80-85/mt CFR Bangladesh level. Some participants in the USWC have bemoaned the significant increase in the cost of doing business. In February, the ocean freight rate for bulk scrap from the USWC was $64/mt CFR Bangladesh.
US East Coast (USEC) containerized prices have softened for a second week, as they appear to be affected by the bearish trend in bulk scrap that has developed over the past week. Bulk scrap exporters in USEC lowered their prices by $10/gt this week due to a weaker export market to Turkey. USEC containerized prices for HMS I/II 80:20 fell slightly in the lower-end range to $330/mt FAS New York (NY) port from $330-335/mt FAS last week, and shredded also softened to $355/mt FAS from $355-360/mt FAS last week.
Bulk scrap
For a second week, prices for bulk scrap in USWC contracted. Last week, they fell by $15/gt; this week, by $10/gt, as price announcements were made yesterday by some exporters. The price of HMS I to LA docks was reported at $250-260/gt delivered export yard, P&S 5ft fell by the same amount to $270/gt delivered, and shredder feed also fell $10/gt to $205-215/gt delivered. Prices for bulk scrap in the San Francisco Bay Area decreased by the same margin to $245-255/gt delivered export yard for HMS I, to $260/gt delivered for P&S 5ft, and to $200-210/gt delivered for shredder feed.
Houston contacts again reported no change and retained $335/gt delivered export yard for HMS I, $350/gt delivered for P&S 5ft, and $310-320/gt delivered for shredder feed.
