European HRC prices fall further amid weak demand, views split on price floor
European domestic HRC prices have continued to decline this week amid persistently weak demand and bearish market sentiment
Many buyers are holding off from new purchases, pointing to adequate stock levels and anticipating further price reductions. As a result, trading activity remains muted, with a cautious and defensive tone dominating the market. Meanwhile, import activity has remained limited, with most offers stable compared to last week. While some market participants believe prices may have bottomed out, others still expect additional downward movement.
More specifically, most local HRC prices from mills in northern Europe, for July and August deliveries, have been voiced at €580-600/mt ex-works, down by €20/mt over the past week, while tradable prices in northern Europe have also declined further this week, by around €10/mt week on week to €560-580/mt ex-works levels. “The HRC market is expected to face further downward pressure over the summer. We have already heard bids at €545/mt ex-works,” a market insider told SteelOrbis.
“Several deals have been reported at €560-580/mt ex-works levels this week in Germany. Most believe that, even though sentiments are negative, prices from mills will not drop below €550/mt ex-works, though tradable prices have bigger room for falling,” a local trader said.
Meanwhile, in Italy, most offers from mills have dropped to €560-570/mt ex-works from €570-590/mt ex-works last week. At the same time, workable prices have dropped as well, falling to €540-550/mt ex-works levels, down by €5-10/mt week on week. Besides, according to sources, buyers remain cautious, with some speculative deals dipping to €535/mt ex-works.
In the meantime, import trading activity in southern Europe has remained rather subdued this week, with most offers for import HRC in southern Europe voiced at €470-530/mt CFR, depending on the supplier, the same as last week. HRC offers from one of the Indonesian mills have been reported at the lower end of the range or around €470-480/mt CFR, while offers from another Indonesian mill have been voiced at €495-505/mt CFR.
Besides, offers from India have been reported at $595/mt CFR southern Europe, which translates to around €508-510/mt CFR, down by €10/mt week on week. Meanwhile, offers from Vietnam have settled at $575/mt CFR, or around €490/mt CFR, while offers for ex-Thailand HRC have been reported at around €510/mt CFR.
Meanwhile, offers from Turkish suppliers have varied depending on the source, with most quoted at €515–530/mt CFR, duty paid, the same as last week. However, lower offers for ex-Turkey HRC for larger volumes have also been heard in the market, at around €480-500/mt CFR, duty paid.
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