Posted on 22 Jan 2020
Abu Dhabi-based Emirates Steel (ESI) has increased its rebar price for the domestic market by AED 53/tonne ($14) on-month for February deliveries to AED 1,953/t ($532) ex-works.
The hike has been driven by higher billet prices compared to mid-December when ESI announced its January-delivery rebar price. Opinions over local market demand, however, are mixed. One mill source tells Kallanish: “The first quarter has improved so far.” But another mill source claims “…demand is not good,” adding that consumption is around the 160,000 tonnes/month mark.
Either way, UAE rebar prices are likely to come down again next month after last week’s drop in US scrap prices into Turkey. Some sources expect scrap to come down further, which will ultimately pull down billet prices.
ESI’s Dubai-based re-roller rival Conares has hiked its rebar price for January deliveries also by AED 53/t to AED 1,951/t ex-works.
ESI said last month steel demand will drop as major Gulf Cooperation Council infrastructure projects are nearing completion. However, a range of real estate and construction projects soon coming on line in Southeast Asia presents an opportunity to supply that region.
United Arab Emirates, where almost 90% of output is accounted for by ESI, saw crude steel output rise 2.5% on-year in the 11 months through November 2019 to 3.03 million tonnes, according to worldsteel data (see Kallanish passim).
Source:Kallanish
