The low demand for finished steel products in Italy has created a climate of uncertainty in the market following the summer closures. “A few price reductions have been recorded by some steel mills which, however, have not yet led to significant purchases,” said Assofermet, the association representing Italian distributors of scrap, raw materials, and steel products, in a press release, adding that the situation could change or emerge more clearly in the second part of the month.
In the international market, after having fallen to minimum levels at the beginning of August, scrap prices saw a rather sharp increase in the middle of the month, before returning to a stable trend in the last week. “Both the Turkish market and the main Asian destinations recorded increases between $25/mt and $30/mt, increases which in a short space of time led almost completely to the interruption of transactions in the Turkish market, while in the East there was a consolidation of these levels in the face of a reduction in volumes,” Assofermet stated. The price level of finished products remained substantially stable and no change in this scenario was recorded in the first days of September.
In the stainless steel scrap segment, August was a month of sideways movement in Italy. The post-holiday period appeared full of hope for operators, but the optimism faded in view of the lack of quotations from steel mills. The rest of Europe has seen similar trends, where prices rose slightly in August, before stabilizing in the first days of September.
The basic pig iron market has shown good availability and a still significant gap between prices for material of Russian origin and other sources. Assofermet’s expectation is for an increase in the second part of the month.
As regards hematite pig iron, a slow recovery of foundries was recorded after the summer period. The purchases made in July are sufficient to cover the current requirements, which confirms the decline of the previous months. Demand is currently still weak. According to Assofermet, market players will have to wait the next few days to understand whether this is due to a slow restart or whether it is a consolidation of the downward trend with lower demand for downstream products and therefore smaller order books. “The supply of hematite pig iron remains stable with particularly attractive prices, especially for material of Russian origin,” commented the association. “The warehouses are still well stocked and customers’ expectations are currently for a further price revision, a trend that can only be prevented by a growth in order books,” Assofermet noted.
Other sources have not yet followed the bullish Indian trend, but more clarity will come in the coming weeks. “Even the shutdown of the manganese mine in Gabon could have an impact on prices,” Assofermet said in conclusion.