Domestic European hot rolled coil prices inched lower in South Europe April 16, amid quieter market conditions ahead of the Easter break.
Market participants pointed to ongoing uncertainty among buyers across the value chain, sharing expectations for near-term stability around the Easter break.
“There are a lot of options for commodity grade HRC but there is no demand as all the big customers are so uncertain,” a South European trader said.
“There are a lot of traders being aggressive making it difficult to make sales, but nobody is looking for larger volumes anyway,” the trader added.
A distributor pointed to similar levels of hesitancy for larger inquiries from buyers.
“Buyers remain cautious due to uncertain quota availability, ongoing market volatility and weak demand discourages bookings,” the distributor said.
“Domestic mills offer shorter lead times than imports, but some exporters are offering additional discounts from Indonesia. [However,] we see no major import offers at the Port of Antwerp,” the source added.
In addition, outlooks across Europe remained largely mixed, with sources across the market continuing to cite the ongoing trend of supply-side-driven price increases, rather than any notable change in demand-side fundamentals.
Platts assessed HRC in Northwest Europe stable at Eur650/mt EXW Ruhr on April 16, and in Southern Europe at Eur625/mt EXW Italy, down Eur5/mt day over day.
Platts assessed imported HRC in Northern Europe at Eur545/mt CIF Antwerp, stable day over day, and in Southern Europe at Eur535/mt CIF Italy.
