The Romanian longs market has come under increased pressure this week, as the already weak demand has been accompanied by the arrival of previously booked Italian rebar cargoes in significant volumes.
According to market sources, several Italian suppliers had concluded sales to Romania earlier, with the overall volume estimated at around 50,000 mt. Although these bookings were not concluded this week, their arrival in the Romanian market has strengthened buyers’ expectations of lower prices and added pressure on sentiments. At the same time, the start of the summer slowdown, liquidity problems and cash flow constraints continue to limit trading activity, while many market players do not expect a meaningful recovery in the near term.
On the import side, Italian origin rebar has become the main focus of the market this week due to the arrival of these previously booked cargoes. Sources indicate that the FOB level for these sales was heard at around €600/mt, which would roughly correspond to around €620-625/mt CFR Romania, depending on freight costs and the terms of the deals. These levels have created a more competitive reference for the market and increased pressure on both import and domestic prices, especially as buying activity remains weak. Offers from Greece have also moved down this week, with rebar currently heard at around €650-660/mt CFR Romania and wire rod at €665-670/mt CFR Romania, compared to €655-665/mt CFR and €665-675/mt CFR, respectively, last week. Bulgarian rebar offers have remained stable week on week at around €650-660/mt CPT Romania.
On the non-EU import side, Egyptian rebar offers have remained stable at €535-555/mt CFR Romania, while wire rod offers continue to be heard at €555-565/mt CFR. Turkish rebar offers are currently heard at around €535-550/mt CFR Romania, compared to last week’s wider range of €530-555/mt CFR, based on an exchange rate of €1 = $1.14.
In the local spot market, domestic rebar prices in Romania have decreased to around €620-630/mt ex-warehouse this week, compared to €635-640/mt ex-warehouse last week. The pressure from competitive import levels has added to the already weak demand environment, while traders are also still holding relatively expensive material purchased earlier. Meanwhile, wire rod prices are currently heard at €680-690/mt ex-warehouse, slightly down from €685-690/mt ex-warehouse in the previous week.
Domestic producer Beltrame Group’s rebar offers are reported at around €635-640/mt ex-works this week, compared to last week’s level of approximately €640-650/mt ex-works.
