South Korea: Major steel mills witness 4% increase in scrap inventory w-o-w
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Ferrous scrap inventory of the eight leading South Korean steel companies in the second week of February stood at 798,000 tonnes (t). This marks an increase of approximately 3.7% from the previous week's inventory of 769,000 t.
The upward trend in iron scrap inventory persists, which can be attributed to the ongoing maintenance schedule of steelmakers post the Lunar New Year holidays.
When comparing the central and southern regions, it has been observed that inventory has increased among steelmakers in the central region, which was quite pronounced, albeit with variations among different companies.
Region-wise inventory
Central region: Among steelmakers in the central region, inventories rose by 5.6% from 388,000 t last week to 410,000 t.
Southern region: Iron scrap inventory of steel mills in the southern region stood at 388,000 t, reflecting a slight increase of 1.8% compared to 381,000 t last week. Similar to the situation in the central region, the inventory of companies that have not undergone repairs has decreased, while the inventory of companies undergoing repairs has increased.
Notably, POSCO's steel scrap inventory decreased by 8.2% w-o-, and the combined inventory of Daehan Steel and YK Steel decreased by 5.2% w-o-w. Meanwhile, Korea Steel, currently undergoing repairs immediately after the Lunar New Year holidays experienced a notable increase of 21.2%.
Despite the iron scrap inventory maintaining an upward trend for four consecutive weeks, it is challenging to classify this amount as substantial, particularly considering that the average monthly inventory level exceeds 800,000 t.
Nevertheless, the inventory of rebar has surged to 400,000 t in early February. The current inventory appears insufficient, attributed to factors such as maintenance of the 90-t electric furnace at Hyundai Steel's Incheon plant and the 100-t electric furnace at Dongkuk Steel's Incheon plant scheduled for the end of February. Assessing the accuracy of this situation may prove challenging.
Note: This article has been published in accordance with an article exchange agreement between SteelDaily and BigMint.
