Posted on 10 Nov 2020
The pickup in automotive sales and construction sector activity in Pakistan bodes well for both cold rolled and hot-dip galvanized coil demand, say Aisha Steel Mills (ASML). The firm adds that the outlook is promising and it expects to achieve production and sales targets.
In the first fiscal quarter through September the firm increased sales 79% on-year to 94,878 tonnes. However, this was short of the 107,675t target for the quarter. Production was down -2% to 69,202t – short of the target by -36% – due to a hot rolled coil shortage, ASML observes.
Two shipments were delayed by HRC suppliers citing Covid-19 and weather-related issues. Congestion at ports in Karachi also caused further delays in clearance of material. Finished product inventory declined from around 30,000t at the start of the financial year to about 4,000t at the end of the September quarter, Kallanish notes.
Chinese HRC prices rose gradually from the beginning of the quarter to the end, from around $450/tonne to $520/t fob China. They have since stabilised. Following the decline in Covid-19 cases in Pakistan, domestic steel demand picked up sharply. CRC prices also increased gradually, following the international trend, ASML comments.
The firm has filed a request with the National Tariff Commission for a sunset review into the 13.17-19.04% anti-dumping duties imposed in 2016 on CRC imports from China and Ukraine. These duties expire in January 2021. ASML expects the duties to be extended for another five years.
ASML’s revenue surged 81% on-year in the September quarter to PKR 13.3 billion ($83.8 million), with exports soaring over 5.5-fold to PKR 276.7m.
Source:Kallanish
