The European hot-rolled coil (HRC) market continues to face a persistent downtrend – Steel News By GTS Steel

The European hot-rolled coil (HRC) market continues to face a persistent downtrend

Trading activity remained subdued in the European hot-rolled coil (HRC) market on Wednesday, March 6, as buyers expressed pessimism, coupled with a lack of demand from end-users and anticipated output cuts, according to reports received by Fastmarkets.

In Northern Europe, recent transactions were limited to small-tonnage bookings, with buyers prioritizing destocking efforts rather than acquiring new volumes of HRC amidst a declining market sentiment.

Buyers in Germany echoed this sentiment, stating that current trading primarily consists of sporadic purchases of around 100 tons, with minimal interest from other market players.

Tradeable price estimates from most buyers hovered between €700-720 ($760-781) per tonne ex-works on Wednesday. Offers ranged from €720-730 per tonne ex-works from integrated mills and €690-700 per tonne ex-works from a re-roller in the Benelux area.

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• Galvanized steel coils supplier in Vietnam

However, buyers emphasized that quoted prices were largely theoretical due to the lack of actual trading activity. The overarching concern remained the absence of demand in the market.

Suppliers predominantly offered April-May delivery for HRC, reflecting the prevailing market conditions.

Fastmarkets’ daily steel HRC index for Northern Europe stood at €712.65 per tonne on Wednesday, a slight decrease from the previous day’s €714.25 per tonne.

Market sources emphasized the necessity for European steel manufacturer to implement output cuts as the most viable strategy to counteract the downward price trend. Stakeholders urged mills to acknowledge the market situation and reduce production capacity accordingly.

In Southern Europe, the domestic steel HRC index for Italy was calculated at €689.38 per tonne on Wednesday, down from the previous day’s €692.97 per tonne.

Despite significant price declines in the domestic market in recent weeks, trading activity remained thin, with most buyers opting to delay restocking. Industry sources suggested that there was still room for prices to decline further, with some buyers anticipating prices to reach €650 per tonne ex-works before considering restocking.

In the secondary market, trading for 4mm HR sheet was observed at prices not exceeding €760-780 per tonne CPT, down from late February levels.

Import offers for HRC from Asia were consolidating around €600-620 per tonne CFR, although buying interest remained subdued. Most overseas suppliers were offering May-shipment HRC, with anticipated arrival in June-July.

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– HRC Coil Steel Manufacturers In Vietnam

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Source: Compiled from Eurometal.net