UK domestic hot-rolled coil prices remained unchanged in the week ended July 17, as market participants pointed to a quieter period with stable demand and mixed expectations.
A service center source said activity levels were expected to decline in the coming weeks as the market moved deeper into summer, though current demand remained relatively stable.
The source also referenced the EU hot-rolled coil market, noting prices were more competitive across the water as mills continued to lower offer levels to fill order books for summer and questioned whether this would impact the UK market.
Platts assessed HRC in Northern Europe at Eur535/mt ex-works Ruhr, stable day over day and the lowest level since Nov. 23, 2020.
Platts assessed HRC in the UK at GBP505/mt DDP West Midlands, unchanged week over week. Tradable values were heard in the range of GBP500-520/mt.
The main point of concern raised from the market continued to be the lack of clarity over the recent tightening of UK quotas on certain types of steel.
“The hot-dipped galvanized quota situation is ridiculous,” a service center source said. “The government didn’t really give any notice; it has been really unclear.”
The source added that some UK ports, particularly Liverpool, were overcrowded due to the quota changes, with significant volumes of material awaiting customs clearance.
Some sources pointed out that customers were switching the origin of their hot-dipped galvanized imports from South Korea and Vietnam, which were most affected by the quota, to countries such as Brazil and Turkey.
