Posted on 02 Oct 2023
The ASEAN billet import market was sluggish last week, Kallanish notes. Regional finished steel demand remains weak and continued price volatility in China adds to the already weak market sentiment.
An order for 20,000t of 3sp 150mm Chinese billet for November shipment was made in the past few days, an Indonesian rerolller reports. He heard of the offer at $510-515/t cfr Jakarta but is unsure of the final booking price. Chinese 3sp billet from Tangshan was offered during the week at $495/t fob.
Chinese billet offers were still heard at low levels last Thursday before China closed for the Golden Week holiday the following day. Chinese traders were shorting the market during the week with offers at $510/tonne cfr for 3sp 150mm billet and $520/t cfr for 5sp grade 150mm billet in ASEAN.
The Philippine market is mostly closed to Chinese billet because most rerollers there process smaller sizes billet. Offers in Manila for 5sp 130mm billet are at $515-520/t cfr for ASEAN billet including Indonesian billet.
“Bids are so low at $505-510/t cfr Manila,” a regional trader says. He expects for the market to remain "very quiet" for next 7-8 days until China returns because "nobody will be aggressively selling when the futures market is closed." He adds that the futures market have in the past rebounded after a long holida,. Kallanish assessed 5sp/ps or Q275 120/125/130mm square billet at $515/t cfr Manila, unchanged on week.
Iranian-origin 3sp and 4sp grade billet is offered at $520-525/t cfr in Thailand. “There is no interest even though the seller is asking for bids at a lower $510/t cfr,” a Thai trader says. Russian billet bookings were heard to have taken place at below $500/t cfr Thailand 10-14 days ago.
In Vietnam, domestic billet prices in Vietnam are prevailing at similar levels of regional billet. Prices are prevailing at VND 12,400-12,500/kg ($512-516/t) in southern Vietnam and VND 12,300-12,350/kg in northern Vietnam. The unfavourable dollar-dong exchange rate is another factor which will deter imports, a Vietnamese mill source says.
Source:Kallanish
