Bangladesh: Imported scrap trades slow-down on subdued steel demand
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Imported scrap trades to Bangladesh have slowed down this week as buyers are expecting further price decline in the near term. Steel mills are relatively less active this week for bulk scrap bookings, sources reported SteelMint.
USA suppliers are quoting around $325/t CFR Chittagong for bulk HMS (80:20) and seem that the suppliers are less interested in lower offers. However, bids from Bangladesh based mills are lower than the quoted offers. Hence no recent bulk scrap bookings were reported.
Scrap trades & offers -Containerized imported scrap offers have dropped as compared to the last week while limited trades were reported this week on dull finished steel market sentiments. SteelMint's assessment of containerized shredded 211 scrap from UK/Europe origins fell by $10-15 w-o-w basis and currently stands at $325/t CFR Chittagong.
"There is no interest from buyers side, if anyone is interested then their price is $10-15 lower than the current market price" shared a scrap trader.
- Containerized HMS 1&2 (80:20) from UK/Europe has also dropped by $10/t and is being offered in the range of $310-315/t CFR Chittagong level.
- Few deals were concluded for Brazilian origin bundles in containers at $275/t CFR basis.
- Local shipyard scrap prices hovering in the range of BDT 30,800-31,300/t ex yard Chittagong.
Steelmakers seek policy support - The country's steelmakers want policy support from the government to sail through this difficult time. The country's steel sector is mostly import oriented for raw materials, tax barriers in the import process are too high while underscoring the need to relax such barriers imposed by the National Board of Revenue, as per reports.
Key suggestions -
- Increase support from the banking sector. Extend the existing five-year term loan scheme to 12 years
- Relax tax rules/barriers imposed by National Board of Revenue
- Increase govt spending in the construction sector to benefit backward linkage industries.
