The European flat steel market has returned from the holidays to see a considerable increase in official domestic prices from ArcelorMittal. The supplier is attempting to raise its offers by €50/mt, citing limited domestic supply and the non-crowded and non-aggressive import segment pricewise.
As a result, the producer has set its official offers for the northern part of the EU at €800/mt ex-works for hot rolled coil (HRC), while HDG is now available at €920/mt ex-works. The prices for the southern part of the EU, namely, the Italian market, have not been settled yet, but the local market players should also expect an increase, though maybe a more modest one. “Maybe not in Spain, but [prices in south] will certainly follow what [northern] Europe is doing,” a trader said.
ArcelorMittal CRC prices are currently assessed at €850-880/mt ex-works to all of the EU, SteelOrbis has learned.
Although the market has been generally expecting the price hike in the EU, many believe that a €50/mt increase will not be accepted under the current market conditions. Some Turkish suppliers believe the actual workable prices will rise by only around €20-30/mt in the coming weeks as the end-user demand situation is not quite so strong.