Italian rebar buyers are showing renewed interest in price enquiries this week following the summer break. The market, though, is expected to continue its quiet trend for the next few days, Kallanish hears.
Buyers are adopting a cautious approach. There is a belief that prices for all long and flat products in Italy will decrease in accordance with declining scrap values in Italy and across Europe.
In early August, there was a decline in rebar contracts by €10-15/tonne ($11-16.6) compared to the previous month. This drop can be attributed to reduced consumption downstream. Transaction values in the domestic market in August ranged from €300-320/t base ex-works to €560-580/t ex-works effective. This includes an average of €260/t for additional size extras.
Domestic mesh is currently priced at approximately €400-430/t base ex-works, with an additional €300/t for size extras. There have been no new contracts implemented over the past three weeks.
According to a construction company and a distribution source, their plan is to rely on their current stock for the next few weeks and resume purchasing only when stocks are at a low level.
Several steelmakers resumed production and sales activity on Monday this week and are evaluating their new quotes. According to the construction company, there is a positive level of work in the infrastructure sector, while the distributor has a different perspective, stating that the market is currently experiencing a lull with no demand.
Scrap prices in Italy are anticipated to experience a notable decline, mirroring the lacklustre performance of both long and flat products (see Kallanish 30 August).
Natalia Capra France