South Asian imported ferrous scrap market continues to remain slow

The South Asian ferrous scrap market continued to remain slow today. In India, demand for imported scrap continued to be sluggish due to a significant disparity between bids and offers. Pakistan observed a public holiday today and the market was quiet. In Bangladesh, financial issues among small- and medium-sized mills slowed the market, despite some interest from larger buyers. Meanwhile, the Turkish scrap market remained stable, with no significant changes in prices amid limited activity due to a public holiday on 15 July.

Overview

India: In India, the demand for imported scrap continues to remain sluggish due to unviability amidst significant bid-offer disparity. Indicative offers for shredded scrap from the US and UK/Europe are around $410-415/t CFR Nhava Sheva, while buyers' asking prices are below this range, around $400-405/t CFR. HMS (80:20) offers from the UK/Europe and West Africa range between $385-395/t CFR, depending on loading.

Offers for UK-origin PNS scraps are at $435/t, while Australian-origin shredded scrap is quoted at $415-420/t CFR.

A major buyer from North India said, "Currently, we are not booking imported scrap as it is unviable. The delta of scrap-ingot is around INR 2,000-2,500/t, which should be at least INR 4,000/t for imported scrap to be feasible."

According to BigMint's data, today's ingot (3.5 x 4.5 inch) DAP Mandi prices stand at INR 44,000/t, while scrap HMS (80:20) Mandi stands at INR 36,400/t. Compared to a month ago, these prices were INR 45,800/t and INR 36,700/t, respectively.

Pakistan: Pakistan was observing a public holiday on the occasion of Muharram, resulting in no major offers or bids being floated today. The last indicative offers for shredded scrap from the UK/Europe were assessed at $425-430/t CFR Qasim.

Bangladesh: Bangladesh's imported scrap market remained slow as small and medium-sized mills faced financial issues. However, big buyers still showed interest in bulk cargoes. Steel demand continued to be dull due to limited buying activities, compounded by the monsoon season. Indicative offers for shredded scrap from the US and UK/Europe were heard at $420-430/t CFR, while HMS 80:20 was at $405-410/t CFR.

A steel mill official commented, "The situation in the country is chaotic, with students blocking roads and railways in protest against quotas, indirectly affecting the movement of domestic scrap and steel. Despite weak steel demand, large mills remained active in the market, mainly dealing with bulk vessels. The banking sector is in turmoil, making it difficult for small mills to conduct business. In Dhaka, a few mills are up for sale, with some owners looking to sell their plants along with the land. Overall, the market is witnessing a period of de-growth."

Turkiye: The Turkish scrap market remained stable with US bulk HMS (80:20) prices unchanged at $390/t CFR. Despite limited activity, a European recycler anticipated strong demand for scrap imports in the near term as Turkish mills still needed several cargoes for August shipment. However, slow inflows and high collection costs in the Benelux region, along with a stronger euro, prevented sellers from softening dollar-denominated offers to Turkiye.

Price assessments

India: UK-origin shredded scrap indicatives were assessed unchanged d-o-d at $415/t CFR Nhava Sheva.

Bangladesh: UK-origin shredded prices were assessed at $427/t CFR Chattogram, up by $2/t d-o-d.

Turkiye: US-origin HMS (80:20) bulk prices were assessed at $390/t CFR Turkiye, unchanged.