CIS pig iron targets $ 600

Offers from the LPG plants are mainly intended for production in March and subsequent loading at the end of March /April, but a small tonnage for production at the end of February is still available. This material is best for Turkey, which usually pays more and prefers faster shipping. However, offers from Turkish buyers at $ 565 per tonne did not resonate with CIS suppliers as they continue to quote prices from $ 600 per tonne in the Black Sea for all directions. This is done in anticipation of an acceleration in demand for supplies in the second quarter.

Higher offers from the mills are due to the low availability of materials in the global market and the rise in prices for scrap and iron ore over the past month. But they far exceed traditional differences and are more in line with how much buyers are willing to pay in relation to the prices of finished products, market sources explain.

China's three-month absence from the market and a series of rerouted shipments, which had an initial price of more than $ 100 per tonne below current market prices, have allowed some buyers to buy cheaper than raw materials from the factory. This alerted others to the same.

How long the outstanding offer lasts, as usual, will depend on the dance of supply and demand. Both are precariously balanced by the availability of goods destined for China and the dynamics of demand for finished products, as well as the development of the scrap market.

In any case, given that the sellers' books are relatively complete, they are unlikely to cut offerings until there is more clarity by the end of the month. Traders note that the limited supply in the market for commercial pig iron and wide demand gives suppliers more room to maneuver than markets for lower-level products.

Demand in the US is moderate, with some Brazilian shipments from China selling at $ 570-580 per tonne in January. Several more, including materials from CIS countries, have been sold to Southeast Asia and the Mediterranean at similar prices, traders say. US bids for new materials for CIS countries were also heard at $ 580 per tonne CFR, well below sellers' current forecasts of $ 620-630 per tonne CFR Nola.