Posted on 22 Aug 2022
The Philippine billet import market remains weak, Kallanish notes. The recent price corrections in China’s steel futures markets have created expectations that regional billet prices may come down.
Offers for EAF/blast furnace billet imports were at around the same levels on-week, at $540-550/tonne cfr Manila, say importing sources in Manila. Induction furnace billet from Thailand remains firm at $535-540/t cfr, on the strength of the Thai domestic scrap market.
There are blast furnace offers for September/October shipments prevailing at $535-545/t cfr Manila, which is slightly lower than the prior week, a Manila trader reported on Friday. He guesses these are from traders shorting the market because such offers are based on multiple regional mill options.
Apart from the lack of market direction in China, the weak Philippine local market continues to drag steel demand, the Manila trader says. “Our Central Bank just raised interest by another 50 basis points and inflation continues to rise,” he notes.
Blast furnace 130-150mm 5sp billet from Indonesia and Malaysia is currently offered back-to-back at $550-560/t cfr Manila, regional trading sources say. Earlier in the week, these offers were heard at $555-565/t Manila. “There was some [buying] interest for only 5,000 tonnes at $540/t cfr Manila then,” a Singapore trader reports. He does not think a deal transpired because Chinese futures fell for two consecutive days thereafter. “So, I’m assuming the buyer is holding off,” he observes.
A 10,000t cargo of Indonesian blast furnace billet was heard booked at $550/t cfr Manila early last week. Since the deal price sounds too high for the current weak market, another Singapore trader thinks “some trader closed their August-shipment short position” with the booked cargo.
Kallanish assessed 5sp/ps or Q275 120/125/130mm square billet at $535-540/t cfr Manila, unchanged on-week.
Source:Kallanish
