South Asia: Imported ferrous scrap offers continue to edge down on poor demand

The South Asian ferrous scrap offers had consistently shown a downward trend, registering a $2/t decline in both India and Pakistan, while remained stable in Turkiye and Bangladesh today. In India, a lack of buying interest and inventory pressure resulted in sluggish market activities. Pakistan experienced subdued downstream demand from the steel sector, leading to a lower appetite for imports. The Bangladeshi market remained stable ahead of the upcoming elections.

In Turkiye, no firm offers or bids were heard today.

Market overview

India: In India, demand for imported scrap remained lackluster owing to minimal buying interest. Indicative offers for shredded scrap from Europe were heard at $410-415/t CFR Nhava Sheva. Offers for HMS (80:20) from Europe and West Africa were heard at $385-390/t CFR Nhava Sheva and Chennai.

According to a spokesperson from a trading company, "The market is currently experiencing a significant downturn. There is an oversupply of distressed cargo for sale, and buyers are maintaining a cautious approach, showing reluctance to engage at higher price levels."

Pakistan: Today in Pakistan, the demand for imported scrap remained subdued. Leading steel mills, including Amerli Steel, Mughal Steel, Moiz Steel, Platinum Steel, and others, decided to decrease rebar prices by PKR 8,000/t ($28/t) due to a lackluster demand from end-users and constraints in liquidity. Consequently, the revised prices for rebar (grade 60) with effect from today stand at around PKR 259,000-259,500/t ($917-924/t) for 9.5/10 and 12mm, and PKR 257,000-257,500/t ($915-917/t) for 16mm and above.

Bangladesh: There were no significant fluctuations observed in the Bangladeshi market today. The indicative offers for shredded scrap from Europe were heard at $435-440/t CFR Chattogram and $415-418/t CFR for HMS (80:20).

Turkiye: No new bids, offers, or transactions were reported today in the Turkish imported ferrous scrap market. Market participants refrained from making trading decisions in the subdued market, and there was no reported buying interest at the same level observed the previous day.

In a notable development yesterday, Turkey's central bank raised its key interest rate by 250 basis points to 42.5%, meeting expectations to counter escalating inflation. This move, pushing the policy rate to a two-decade high, aims to establish positive real rates based on end-2024 inflation expectations. The central bank, committed to swiftly concluding the aggressive tightening cycle, anticipates inflation to peak at 70-75% in May before gradually decreasing to around 36% by the end of next year. Despite this, the Turkish lira remained relatively stable after the announcement.

Recent deals

• Approximately 250-t of sheared HMS scraps were booked from Europe at $385/t CFR west coast India.
  
  
• About 200-t of HMS (80:20) were sealed at $388/t CFR west coast India from West Africa.
  
  
• Around 500 t of shredded scrap were booked from Middle East at $433/t CFR Qasim.
  
  
• Around 2000 t of Australian HMS (80:20) scraps were sold at $410/t CFR Chattogram.
  
  

Price assessments

India: The UK-origin shredded scrap indicatives inched down by $2/t to $410/t CFR Nhava Sheva today.

Pakistan: The UK-origin shredded scrap indicatives were down by $2/t to $425/t CFR Qasim today.

Bangladesh: The UK-origin shredded scrap prices were assessed stable at $435/t CFR Chattogram.

Turkiye: The US-origin HMS (80:20) bulk prices were assessed stable $424/t CFR Turkiye.