The current price recovery was driven mainly by the limited import availability due to the potential trade risks related to the latest steel safeguard review of the European Commission, Fastmarkets understands.
According to market participants, prices were also supported by some restocking, particularly in Northern Europe.
Mills in Germany were largely sold out of April-delivery material, a German distributor source told Fastmarkets, with local mills are now offering May-delivery HRC at €630-650 per tonne delivered – which would net back to €620-640 ($648-669) per tonne ex-works.
According to the source, the mills are unwilling to give significant discounts.
In comparison, at the beginning of February, German mills were heard offering HRC at €600-610 per tonne ex-works.
A major mill in the Benelux area was offering HRC at €630-640 per tonne ex-works on Wednesday, Fastmarkets understands.
And sources estimated the workable level for HRC in Northern Europe at €600-620 per tonne ex-works.
One buyer source said €590 per tonne ex-works would also be workable for larger volumes.
Fastmarkets calculated its daily steel hot-rolled coil index domestic, exw Northern Europe at €608.75 per tonne on Wednesday, up by €2.75 per tonne from €606.00 per tonne on Tuesday.
The Northern European index was up by €6.25 per tonne week on week and by €35.00 per tonne month on month.
Sources said the upward trend would continue, especially until the European Commission announces the results of the current steel safeguard review. This is expected to happen by the end of March, with the new rules expected to come into force some time in April.
However, a major European steel maker was heard withdrawing their HRC offers from the market due to expectations that the results of the review would be announced sooner.
Some sources said they expect a statement on the new measures next week, while others said it was likely to come at the beginning of March – or no later than the middle of March.
For Southern Europe, Fastmarkets’ daily steel hot-rolled coil index domestic, exw Italy was calculated at €600.00 per tonne on Wednesday, up by €2.50 per tonne from €597.50 per tonne on Tuesday.
The index was up by €6.67 per tonne week on week and up by €30.00 per tonne month on month.
Local suppliers in Italy were heard offering April-delivery HRC at €620-640 per tonne delivered, which would equate to €610-630 per tonne ex-works.
These levels were higher than the offers for March-delivery coil at €590-620 per tonne delivered (€580-610 per tonne ex-works).
Fastmarkets’ sources estimated the workable level for HRC in Southern Europe at €590-600 per tonne ex-works.
A source in Italy told Fastmarkets that trading in the Italian market remained comparatively slow, due to a mismatch between buyer and seller views about the workable price.
Italian customers have maintained sufficient stock levels and are in no hurry to buy material at the current prices, Fastmarkets understands, with most of them content to wait and see how the steel safeguard review develops.
The HRC import market was also quiet in Italy on Wednesday.
HRC from Turkey was on offer at €580-590 per tonne CFR, including the anti-dumping duty, sources said, while Indonesian HRC was on offer at €550 per tonne CFR and HRC from South Korea at €560 per tonne CFR.
