Billet prices soften in SE Asia despite price stickiness
Billet offer prices in Southeast Asia have slipped by $10-20/tonne from late-August to $490-500/t, trading sources tell Steel Business Briefing. Most offers are at this price level but there are several at lower levels of $480-485/t cfr. "There is no market collapse. Some low-priced offers do not equate to the whole market coming down," a regional trader tells SBB. SBB is told that many mills are still reluctant to lower offer prices and are trying to maintain prices, despite the weaker sentiment. "Mills do not want to lower prices because scrap has been firm," an Indonesian importer says. There was a booking of 15,000 t of billet from Russian Far East port for early October shipment at $485/t cfr Philippines, local trading sources say. A trader is believed to have sold this position cargo. A cargo of 25,000 t of US-origin billet is recently heard offered at $485/t cfr Philippines for October shipment. Russian-origin 5sp/ps billet is being offered at $480/t cfr Taiwan. .It may have been a diverted cargo from China," a trader in Taipei tells SBB. But there is very little buying interest in Taiwan. "Demand for rebar is not good and stockists fear that prices will fall," the trader adds. He says that buyers are not keen to book "no matter what price is being offered" and adds that offers, as recently as a week ago, were heard at $500-510/t cfr. Domestic Taiwanese billet is now priced at the equivalent of $470-475/t fob or $490-495/t cfr Philippines. A booking of 5,000 t of Taiwanese-origin billet was booked to Vietnam more than a week ago at $495/t cfr Haiphong.
Korean H-beam demand weakens again
Korean domestic demand for H-beams has weakened again even though September-October is usually the high season for domestic sales. The softening presents challenges to mills that recently hiked prices. The Korean market for beams and other long products strengthened last month, but this was largely a temporary occurrence reflecting speculative demand ahead of expected price hikes from Hyundai Steel and other producers from this month. The downturn in market demand means that Hyundai faces difficulty gaining acceptance for its price hike from end-users. Hyundai's actual sales price for its 300x300mm H-beams being quoted by its distributors is around KRW 880-890,000/t ($716-724/t), lower than the mini mill's list price. Hyundai, Korea's largest long-products maker, lifted its new list price for 300x300mm beams to KRW 910,000/t from 1 September, as Steel Business Briefing reported, aiming to end discounting among its distributors from this month. "However, to sell at Hyundai's list price is difficult as market demand is not supporting its aim to raise prices," a distributor on Korea's southern coast tells SBB. Prospects for the rest of the year or early next year are also gloomy. "Normally, by this time of year there are new H-beam orders from consumers for the coming year's demand but we haven't seen any yet," he adds. Meanwhile, Korea's H-beam output this month from the two major producers Hyundai and Dongkuk Steel Mill is expected to decrease slightly by 14,300 t to 246,000 t compared with August's 260,300 t, SBB learns
Iron ore price turned upward at end of week: The Steel Index
The latest daily iron ore reference prices released by The Steel Index last Friday show that the price for 62% Fe content iron ore fell back during most of the week from the previous Friday's level, but rose by more than 1.5% on Friday. Average weekly freight rates on all of the key shipping routes to China were lower than the previous week. The reference price for 62% Fe content iron ore fines finished the week at $77.30/dry metric tonne CFR Tianjin port, China. This was a $1.40/dmt, or 1.8%, decrease from a week earlier, but a rise of $1.20/dmt from the low of $76.1/dmt reached mid-week. The reference price for 58% Fe fines finished the week at $64.70/dry metric tonne CFR Tianjin port, China. Within these delivered prices, rates for shipments from both the west and east coasts of India and from Australia and Brazil to China fell steadily during the week. The Steel Index is majority-owned by Steel Business Briefing and specialises in compiling steel and iron ore reference prices based on actual transaction data. Further details of the methodology and specifications for the two grades of iron ore can be found on the website www.thesteelindex.com. Companies wishing to subscribe to the full set of reference prices or apply to submit iron ore or steel price data can do so on the website .
Billet offer prices in Southeast Asia have slipped by $10-20/tonne from late-August to $490-500/t, trading sources tell Steel Business Briefing. Most offers are at this price level but there are several at lower levels of $480-485/t cfr. "There is no market collapse. Some low-priced offers do not equate to the whole market coming down," a regional trader tells SBB. SBB is told that many mills are still reluctant to lower offer prices and are trying to maintain prices, despite the weaker sentiment. "Mills do not want to lower prices because scrap has been firm," an Indonesian importer says. There was a booking of 15,000 t of billet from Russian Far East port for early October shipment at $485/t cfr Philippines, local trading sources say. A trader is believed to have sold this position cargo. A cargo of 25,000 t of US-origin billet is recently heard offered at $485/t cfr Philippines for October shipment. Russian-origin 5sp/ps billet is being offered at $480/t cfr Taiwan. .It may have been a diverted cargo from China," a trader in Taipei tells SBB. But there is very little buying interest in Taiwan. "Demand for rebar is not good and stockists fear that prices will fall," the trader adds. He says that buyers are not keen to book "no matter what price is being offered" and adds that offers, as recently as a week ago, were heard at $500-510/t cfr. Domestic Taiwanese billet is now priced at the equivalent of $470-475/t fob or $490-495/t cfr Philippines. A booking of 5,000 t of Taiwanese-origin billet was booked to Vietnam more than a week ago at $495/t cfr Haiphong.
Korean H-beam demand weakens again
Korean domestic demand for H-beams has weakened again even though September-October is usually the high season for domestic sales. The softening presents challenges to mills that recently hiked prices. The Korean market for beams and other long products strengthened last month, but this was largely a temporary occurrence reflecting speculative demand ahead of expected price hikes from Hyundai Steel and other producers from this month. The downturn in market demand means that Hyundai faces difficulty gaining acceptance for its price hike from end-users. Hyundai's actual sales price for its 300x300mm H-beams being quoted by its distributors is around KRW 880-890,000/t ($716-724/t), lower than the mini mill's list price. Hyundai, Korea's largest long-products maker, lifted its new list price for 300x300mm beams to KRW 910,000/t from 1 September, as Steel Business Briefing reported, aiming to end discounting among its distributors from this month. "However, to sell at Hyundai's list price is difficult as market demand is not supporting its aim to raise prices," a distributor on Korea's southern coast tells SBB. Prospects for the rest of the year or early next year are also gloomy. "Normally, by this time of year there are new H-beam orders from consumers for the coming year's demand but we haven't seen any yet," he adds. Meanwhile, Korea's H-beam output this month from the two major producers Hyundai and Dongkuk Steel Mill is expected to decrease slightly by 14,300 t to 246,000 t compared with August's 260,300 t, SBB learns
Iron ore price turned upward at end of week: The Steel Index
The latest daily iron ore reference prices released by The Steel Index last Friday show that the price for 62% Fe content iron ore fell back during most of the week from the previous Friday's level, but rose by more than 1.5% on Friday. Average weekly freight rates on all of the key shipping routes to China were lower than the previous week. The reference price for 62% Fe content iron ore fines finished the week at $77.30/dry metric tonne CFR Tianjin port, China. This was a $1.40/dmt, or 1.8%, decrease from a week earlier, but a rise of $1.20/dmt from the low of $76.1/dmt reached mid-week. The reference price for 58% Fe fines finished the week at $64.70/dry metric tonne CFR Tianjin port, China. Within these delivered prices, rates for shipments from both the west and east coasts of India and from Australia and Brazil to China fell steadily during the week. The Steel Index is majority-owned by Steel Business Briefing and specialises in compiling steel and iron ore reference prices based on actual transaction data. Further details of the methodology and specifications for the two grades of iron ore can be found on the website www.thesteelindex.com. Companies wishing to subscribe to the full set of reference prices or apply to submit iron ore or steel price data can do so on the website .
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