EU coil importers evaluate offers on domestic shortage

EU coil importers have upped their activity since the beginning of March due to persistent domestic supply shortages and rallying prices in the bloc, Kallanish learns from sources.

For hot rolled coil, the latest most competitive offers have been reported from India, at some €750/t ($892) cfr Italy and €765/t cfr northern Spain. Traders note this level is attracting orders from clients.

Some deliveries of these new Indian HRC orders could arrive before the end of June, meaning they will need to be calculated in the second-quarter safeguard quota allowance. India rapidly exhausted its HRC quota of some 170,000 tonnes in Q1. From Q2 it will be able to make use of its country specific quotas, plus a maximum of 30% of the residual other countries quotas, which have remained almost unused so far.

While Indian offers are attracting interest, Turkish mills are reported to be uncompetitive for HRC, with offers, including duties, reported at above €800/t cfr southern Europe.

Buyers in Europe are also looking for further opportunities, but these remain scarce. Algerian mill Sider El Hadjar has informed the market it is preparing a shipment of 15,000 tonnes of HRC to Italy, representing a new potential procurement option for tubemakers or low-grade HRC buyers.

Traders also note that CRC is the most difficult to find at competitive prices in Europe. Hot-dip galvanized coil offers are meanwhile still being considered from Turkey, though offer levels remain at some €40-50/t above domestic European prices.

Emanuele Norsa Italy