Posted on 25 Jul 2022
The prevailing downward market sentiment along with the massive devaluation of the Pakistani rupee against the dollar have hit scrap imports in Pakistan. The volatility and shortage of the dollar pushed a few buyers to purchase dollars on Thursday at PKR 238-240/USD, against the official rate of PKR 228/USD, sources inform Kallanish.
Early last week, offers for UK- and EU-origin shredded scrap were noted at $470-475/tonne cfr Port Qasim, but received no bids from buyers. However, offers started dropping from Tuesday onwards to $458-460/t cfr Port Qasim and some bookings were heard at these levels. Offers on Wednesday further plummeted to $452-455/t cfr Port Qasim and around 1,500-2,000t of UK- and EU-origin shredded scrap were booked in this range.
Prices plunged further to $450/t cfr Port Qasim on Thursday and were noted stable on Friday. A Sindh-based mill booked around 2,000t of UK-origin at $450/t cfr Port Qasim on Thursday, while another mill is heard to have also booked 2,000t UK-origin shredded at $450/t cfr Port Qasim on Friday.
“Sentiment is weak in Pakistan and the currency devaluation has further sidelined imported scrap buyers,” says a trading source. “This is impacting both the big and smaller mills; they are unable to estimate their cost of production amid this volatility in currencies and offers. Further, the monsoons have made them cautious as the movement of rebar decreases during the rainy season.”
Offers for United Arab Emirates-origin HMS1 plummeted $30-35/t on-week at $485-490/t cfr Qasim on Friday. Mills are seen showing limited interest in procuring HMS1 as shredded is available to them at a cheaper price.
Meanwhile, offers for ship scrap from containers plunged to $580/light displacement tonne (ldt). Scrap from dry bulkers and tankers is hovering at $560/ldt and $570/ldt, respectively.
Source:Kallanish
