The Spanish steel market begins October with prices steady. The post-summer holiday recovery did not materialise since demand from the main consumer sectors remained weaker than expected, market sources tell Kallanish.
“We were expecting a rebound in HRC purchases in September, but customers from the automotive and energy sectors preferred to wait before making their purchases,” one seller comments. The delay in the European Commission’s planned tightening of trade defence policy, coupled with uncertainty over demand, was the main factor affecting trade activity in recent weeks, he explains.
Distributors do not anticipate major changes in October, nor do re-rollers, who are not seeing sales to the downstream sector picking up. They confirm that current demand is mainly driven by small customers in the construction sector who already have their work prepaid and underway, and by supplies for household appliances.
“The combination of weak demand and high coil prices in the Iberian Peninsula is keeping the market in a state of stagnation, with most of the major steel-consuming industries in ‘wait-and-see’ mode. This situation is unlikely to change in October, with steelmakers assessing their production rates,” says another source.
Spanish mills are selling S235JR grade hot rolled coil at around €640-650/t ($749.86-761.58/t) delivered.
Todor Kirkov Bulgaria
