Indian mid-sized mills hiked rebar prices by around INR 100-300/MT, billet by INR 100-400/MT & sponge iron by INR 100-300/MT due to improved demand on 22nd Jan. As per sources, prices rose as demand of finished steel increased while inventories remained flat.
Chinese HRC export rose driven by improved demand and tight supply ahead of Chinese New Year holiday scheduled in the month of February. Moreover, strong domestic demand also pushed prices in upward direction. Going ahead, steel prices are expected to maintain uptrend amid gains in domestic market due to tight supply.
Taiwan imported 323,013 MT ferrous scrap in November, rise of 17% M-o-M as against 275,689 MT ferrous scrap in Oct’18. Moreover, it’s billet imports increased by 10% y-o-y to 0.34 MnT in Nov’18 from 0.31 MnT in Nov’17.
(Source-steelmint.com)
