Prices for imported steel hot-rolled coil in Europe increased in the week to Wednesday January 14, as new trade regulations limited the number of suppliers and cheaper offers in the market, sources told Fastmarkets.
Buyers remain cautious about accepting cheaper offers from countries with higher default values under the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), some of which are no longer available in the market.
The rollout of CBAM on January 1 meant the implementation of the European Commission’s finalized benchmarks and default emission values, which dictate the carbon costs that importers must pay to trade with the bloc.
Default values remain particularly elevated for several countries that are major flat steel suppliers to the EU, including India, Indonesia and China.
Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel hot-rolled coil import, cfr main port Northern Europe was €490-530 ($570-617) per tonne, rising from €480-520 per tonne the previous week.
Offers from Saudi Arabia and Turkey were at the higher end of the assessment at €530 per tonne CFR, while offers from India were heard at €500 per tonne CFR.
Estimates of workable prices were also reported at €490-520 per tonne CFR during the assessment period.
Meanwhile, the DDP assessment for HRC imports to Northern Europe also increased on Wednesday.
Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel hot-rolled coil import, ddp Northern Europe was €610-630 per tonne on Wednesday, rising from €595-620 per tonne in the previous week.
The increase in the DDP assessment is in line with higher offers heard in the market, also hovering at €610-630 per tonne DDP.
HRC import prices to Southern Europe also increased in the week to Wednesday.
Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel hot-rolled coil import, cfr main port Southern Europe was €490-530 per tonne this week, rising from €475-520 per tonne during the previous assessment period.
The lower end of the assessment aligns with offers from India heard at €490 per tonne CFR, while the upper end matches offers from Saudi Arabia heard at €530 per tonne CFR.
A market source also reported an offer at €543 per tonne CFR from Algeria, but it was not included in the final assessment because no trading was reported at that level.
Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel hot-rolled coil import, ddp Southern Europe was €610-630 per tonne this week, rising from €590-620 per tonne during the previous assessment period.
The assessment matches some estimates of workable levels heard around €610-630 per tonne DDP, while offers were also reported around €615-630 per tonne DDP.
