Fastmarkets’ calculation of the daily steel HRC index, domestic, exw Northern Europe, was €580.31 ($682.39) per tonne on Monday, up by just €0.31per tonne from €580.00 per tonne on Friday September 12.
The Northern European index was up by €3.23 per tonne week on week and by €11.14 per tonne month on month.
Trading remained muted in the region, with buyers still keeping to the sidelines, assessing the market situation.
Several buyers told Fastmarkets that they had purchased enough coil by end-July / mid-August and therefore were in no rush to restock.
Besides, buyers refused to accept higher offers for November-December delivery coil, claiming demand was not strong enough to allow for a second round of price rises.
Buyer estimates of the tradable values for HRC in Northern Europe came in at between €570 per tonne and €590 per tonne ex-works, with transactions reported at €580-585 per tonne ex-works for October delivery HRC in Germany and the Benelux area.
At the same time, official offers were heard at €600-630 per tonne ex-works for HRC with delivery in October-November.
Several market sources suggested that domestic HRC prices in Europe could see some upward movement in the fourth quarter, though uncertainty around the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) and safeguard measures may be dampening interest in fresh import bookings.
“European producers may find room to lift domestic prices slightly, provided increases remain reasonable; otherwise, buyers could still weigh the risks and turn to imports,” a buyer in Germany said.
In Southern Europe, meanwhile, Fastmarkets’ corresponding daily steel hot-rolled coil index domestic, exw Italy was calculated at €548.75 per tonne on Monday, up by €0.25 per tonne from €548.50 per tonne on Friday.
The Italian index was down by €1.67 per tonne week on week but up by €11.25 per tonne month on month.
The Italian market restarted on a slow note in September, with little trading activity reported so far.
Local mills offering October-November delivery HRC came at €580-600 per tonne delivered (€570-585 per tonne ex-works).
Buyer estimates of achievable prices were reported at €540-550 per tonne ex-works.
So far, buyers deemed new offers as unworkable, considering lack of support from end-user demand.
In the secondary market, 4mm HR sheet was on offer at €650 per tonne CPT, with steel service centers looking to raise prices to €670-680 per tonne CPT, but demand was not strong enough to support this.
Offers for overseas coil were largely stable on Monday.
HRC from Turkish suppliers was offered at €520-540 per tonne CFR, including the EU anti-dumping duty, for late November arrival.
HRC From India was on offer in Italy at €520-530 per tonne CFR for November shipment, while HRC from Indonesia was on offer at €485-490 per tonne CFR, with larger transactions reported at the lower end of the price range from the previous week.
