Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil were largely unchanged in Europe May 10 as trading activity in the market remained muted.
Distributors have been avoiding building inventories, limiting restocking to needed minimum, as they have been uncertain about price sustainability. Holidays in some European countries this week further slowed demand, sources said.
“Stocks are not high, which means that the distributors need to make some bookings, but this also means that the order books are not as good as real demand has not improved,” a Northwest European service center source said.
Platts assessed domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Northwest Europe stable on the day at Eur635/mt ex-works Ruhr May 10.
Tradable values have been reported at Eur630-650/mt ex-works Ruhr, with the majority of data heard at Eur630-640/mt ex-works Ruhr.
Offers were reported at Eur640-670/mt ex-works Ruhr.
The mills have been offering June-July delivery material.
Platts assessed domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in South Europe up by Eur5/mt on the day at Eur630/mt ex-works Italy May 10.
The assessment was based on deals and tradable values reported at the equivalent of Eur630/mt ex-works Italy.
Some declines in import offers from Asia have not supported the sentiment in the market. Offers of HRC from Asia have been heard at Eur600/mt CIF Italy, but buyers believe they can achieve prices of Eur570-580/mt CIF Italy.
Maria Tanatar | Devbrat Saha
