South Korea: Scrap imports rebound in Feb'22 on higher bookings from Japan

South Korea's ferrous scrap import volumes in Feb'22 stood at 0.37 million tonnes (mnt), rising by 19% m-o-m as against 0.31 mnt in Jan'22, as per data maintained with SteelMint.

Imports rebounded mainly due to improved buying interest. Japan continued to be the largest supplier to South Korea at 0.30 mnt. Other major exporters were Russia and the USA at 41,061 t and 9,280 t respectively.

On a y-o-y basis, South Korea's scrap imports rose by 9% from 0.34 mnt in Feb'21, showing a recovery in the post-pandemic period.

Country-wise breakup:

• Imports from Japan surge: South Korea imported 0.30 mnt of Japanese bulk scrap in Feb, a sharp hike of 50% as against 0.20 mnt in the previous month.
  
  

Notably, this hike was seen after five months during which Japanese suppliers remained inactive in the exports market as they found it more profitable to cater to high demand in the domestic market.

South Korea's imports from Japan in Feb nearly reached the 0.37 mnt level recorded in Aug'21. However, imports continued to decline in the successive months.

The surge in volumes owes to a sudden improvement in demand for high-grade Japanese material.

• Imports from USA drop: South Korea's scrap imports from the USA declined sharply by 75% to 9,280 t in Feb as against 36,607 t in the previous month.
  
  

South Korean mills preferred other origin scraps over US-origin material owing to a steep hike in freight charges, which dissuaded buyers from concluding deals with US traders.

• Imports from Russia rise: Scrap imports from Russia saw an increase of 33% to 41,061 t in Feb compared to 30,779 t in Jan.
  
  

Outlook
It is expected that Korean buyers may keep their import volumes high in the coming months on restocking needs.