Posted on 13 Oct 2021
Bangladesh’s GPH Ispat exported 29,658 tonnes of billet to China on 5 October. It was the fifth shipment by the company to China since November 2020, with overall tonnage reaching 120,000t.
An informed source tells Kallanish the shipment was sold at $695/tonne cfr China and rumoured to be booked in August-September. The consignment is loaded in the bulk carrier “MV Crown Virtue” and destined for the Yangtze River port of Zhangjiagang. The shipment is expected to reach China on 19 October.
High production cost, coupled with higher logistics costs, are hampering Bangladeshi steelmaker exports. The steelmakers have requested government to provide added incentives to support the industry.
“There are many obstacles in exporting billets,” says GPH Ispat director Almas Shimul. “Even with that, we want to spread this product in the world market. However, in order to survive off our steel in the world market, the government has to give special incentives.”
Bangladesh’s steelmakers pay $60-70/tonne freight to ship billet from Bangladesh to China, whereas Vietnam has to pay $20-25/t and India $35-40/t. “They [Bangladesh steelmakers] have to export per tonne billet at three times the rate of Vietnam and twice that of India,” says GPH Ispat executive director Kamrul Islam.
“Moreover, we have to pay BDT 4,000-5,000 ($46.73-58.42) for various kinds of duties and taxes during the unloading of raw materials,” Islam concludes.
Source:Kallanish
