South Asia: Imported ferrous scrap market faces slowdown as buyers show resistance

• Indian scrap buyers cautious as steel import duty looms
  
  
• Bangladesh's scrap offers dip as buyers await lower prices
  
  

The South Asian imported scrap market witnessed subdued activity today, with buyers in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh maintaining a cautious stance amid weak steel demand, tight liquidity, and ongoing economic challenges. While sellers held firm on offers, buyers continued to push for lower price levels, reflecting a wait-and-watch approach.

Meanwhile, Turkiye's scrap market faced similar sluggishness, as mills hesitated to restock due to weak end-product sales and falling prices. Across the region, steel markets remained under pressure, with production cuts, import competition, and uncertain demand recovery weighing heavily on sentiment.

Imported scrap offers saw a drop of $1-2/t in Bangladesh and Pakistan, while remaining unchanged in India and Turkiye.

Overview

India: India's imported scrap market remained muted today as weak steel demand and liquidity constraints kept buyers cautious. Shredded scrap from the UK/Europe was offered at $380-385/t CFR Nhava Sheva, but buyers sought lower levels around $370-375/t CFR Nhava Sheva. HMS (80:20) from the same region saw offers at $360-365/t CFR, though bids hovered near $350/t. West African HMS offers ranged between $360-370/t CFR.

Traders cited ongoing production cuts and uncertainty over potential steel import duties as factors weighing on sentiment. Domestic scrap availability at competitive prices also deterred imports, leaving the market in a wait-and-watch mode amid concerns over weak finished steel sales and slow demand recovery.

Notably, a deal of around 1,000 t HMS (80:20) was heard to have been booked from the US at $365/t CFR Nhava Sheva.

Pakistan: Pakistan's imported scrap market remained subdued today as buyers held off amid weak steel demand and tight margins. Offers for UK/EU-origin shredded stood at $380-385/t CFR Qasim, with bids hovering around $376-378/t, reflecting cautious sentiment. Domestic rebar prices remained stable at PKR 245,000-248,000/t, while local scrap traded at PKR 142,000-144,000/t. Mills operated at reduced capacity, facing pressure from falling global scrap prices and sluggish construction activity.

Bangladesh: Bangladesh's imported scrap market remained sluggish, with buyers resisting high offers amid weak steel demand and liquidity concerns. EU/UK-origin shredded scrap was offered at $385-390/t CFR Chattogram, but buyers awaited lower levels. Australian HMS (90:10) offers stood at $385-390/t CFR, with bids around $382-385/t CFR, while Japanese H2 bulk offers at $360-365/t CFR failed to attract interest.

Domestic rebar sales in Dhaka and Chattogram remained weak despite discounts, with local scrap prices hovering around BDT 49,000-51,000/t and rebars at BDT 77,000-78,000/t ex Dhaka and BDT 80,000-81,000/t ex Chattogram.

Amid economic challenges and cautious sentiment, market participants are adopting a wait-and-watch approach, anticipating improved conditions and potential price relief toward the year-end.

Turkiye: The Turkish imported scrap market softened as mills remained cautious, hesitant to restock amid weak end-product prices and sluggish rebar sales. Offers for US-origin bulk HMS (80:20) was assessed at $338/t CFR, with buyer targets as low as $330/t. While a Baltic-origin deal was reported around $337-338/t CFR, confirmation remained elusive. Sellers resisted further price drops, holding firm near $340/t CFR. Market sentiment pointed to a potential bottom, but the lack of new deals reflected ongoing uncertainty as mills sought lower prices and traders anticipated further declines in rebar.

Price assessments

India: UK-origin shredded indicatives were assessed stable at $380/t CFR Nhava Sheva, d-o-d.

Pakistan: UK-origin shredded indicatives edged down by $2/t d-o-d to $380/t CFR .

Bangladesh: UK-origin shredded prices were assessed at $382/t CFR Chattogram, down by $1/t d-o-d.

Turkiye: US-origin HMS (80:20) bulk prices remained unchanged d-o-d at $338/t CFR Turkiye.