Posted on 26 Oct 2020
The Philippine billet import market has risen, Kallanish notes. Suppliers have hiked prices amid a rising Chinese billet import market.
Russian 130mm or 100mm square 5sp billet for January shipment is offered at $458/tonne cfr Manila. A fresh offer for 24,000 tonnes of 125mm square billet from another Russian mill, also for January shipment, is now offered at $458/t cfr. Billet for December shipment from the same mill was at $445/t earlier in the week.
A leading re-roller in the Philippines is heard to have secured Black Sea billet at $460/t cfr Manila. A local trader says the higher price tag is because the company usually books on 180-day financing and credit insurance terms. These terms could add at least $6.5/t to the deal price. The deal could have closed higher because the re-roller booked 150mm billet, and Chinese billet buying may have thinned down availability, a buyer says.
Blast furnace and EAF billet from Vietnam is now offered at around $464/t cfr Manila ($448/t fob Vietnam). The week before, Japanese EAF billet was booked at $447/t cfr Manila.
Vietnamese induction furnace billet is currently offered at $450-455/t cfr Manila. A booking for this billet took place at $448/t cfr after the Japanese EAF billet order, a regional trader reports. A recent Chinese booking is providing support for the regional market, he adds.
A 30,000t cargo of Indonesian 150mm square 4sp blast furnace billet for December shipment was booked at $452/t cfr China on 16 October, regional trading sources report. This same Sulawesi-based Indonesian mill is offering billet at $460/t cfr Jakarta, but there are no takers, Indonesian re-roller sources say. Vietnamese-origin 3sp blast furnace billet was last heard booked on 9 October at $445/t cfr China.
On Friday, Kallanish raised its 5sp/ps or Q275 120/125/130mm square billet assessment to $450-453/t cfr Manila, up $5.5 on week.
Source:Kallanish
