EU HRC market in wait-and-see mode

Activity in the European hot-rolled coil market has remained slow on May 16 as buyers hold back from trading on downward sentiment and major mills are expected to return with offers in June.

“Current market is silent. Main players in Germany are currently not offering, import prices are decreasing, which will not really motivate customers to buy — they are waiting and expect further decreases,” a German service center said.

A Northwest European reroller has been offering limited volumes of September production material at Eur750/mt delivered Germany, while other mills have not been giving offers.

Market participants estimated tradable values at Eur750-800/mt ex-works Ruhr.

Platts assessed domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Northwest Europe unchanged on the day to Eur770/mt ex-works Ruhr.

The bearish mood in the market has been supported by combination of competitive import offers, limited demand from both end-users and distributors. Those factors are expected to offset any impact from limited domestic supply, caused by full order books, technical uses at some mills and scheduled maintenances at others.

Northwest European mills are expected to return with offers for September rolling coil in late June. By September, domestic production rates and, therefore, coil availability will rise, sources said.

Platts assessed domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in South Europe unchanged on the day at Eur750/mt ex-works Italy on May 16, reflecting deals and tradable values heard in the market.

Platts assessed prices for imported coil in South Europe stable on the day at Eur720/mt CIF Italy on May 16. Offers of the material from Asia have been heard at Eur620-630/mt CIF Italy.

Platts is part of S&P Global Commodity Insights.

Author Maria Tanatar