Prices of commodity plate on the northwestern European market dwindled further throughout July. The assumption expressed by most market players in June, that the bottom line had been reached, has been proven wrong once more.
“Prices for plate have not reached the bottom, even if it looks close,” one observer stated in mid-July. By then, prices had already slid by roughly another €50/tonne ($54) from June’s level, which saw offers of S355 from integrated mills dip below €800/t ex-works. He now sees S235 at below the mark of €700/t – at €680/t. This would match with another observer’s information that the higher, S355 grade is being offered by one German mill at €730/t delivered Ruhr.
These observations are not necessarily shared by active buyers and other sources. “I have not heard those offers from integrated mills yet,” one buyer who focuses on domestic quarto plate tells Kallanish. He confirms those prices only for Italian offers. One mill source concurs with the buyer, confirming that Italian offers for northern markets are at below €700/t, while northern domestic mills are keeping offers at above that level.
According to the same observer, northwestern mills have sufficient “project business” for higher plate grades and sizes, and have reasonably well filled orderbooks, with six weeks’ delivery.
Christian Koehl Germany