Trading on the European hot-rolled steel market was suspended on Tuesday, June 3, as buyers in both Northern and Southern Europe refrained from transactions amid low demand and expectations of further short-term price declines.
"There have been no deals in recent days. The more I try to push the buyers, the more perspective they have," says the trader.
"I think we're going to have a very dark summer in the steel markets," he added.
According to customer estimates, theoretical workable human rights prices in Northern Europe ranged from €615-625 ($700-712) per ton of Ex-work Tuesday.
Producer sources reported their estimates of 630-640 per tonne on a free-of-charge basis earlier this week, which was deemed completely unfeasible for most buyers.
Several trader sources said they expected prices in Northern Europe to reach €600 per tonne by the end of June, while others believed the downtrend would persist for longer.
"the situation in Europe will deteriorate sharply after July 1, amid the introduction of new duties in the United States. I[believe]that the price[for HRC in Europe]will decrease," the source said.
In Italy, sources also reported weak demand, and no fresh orders were heard Tuesday.
Sources on both buyers and sellers of the parties reported calculations of effective prices ranging from €580-610 per ton of Ex-work, depending on tonnage.
This is when earlier estimates of the workable price for a decent mass did not fall below €590 per ton on a free-of-charge basis and official offers for €620 were received.
Fastmarkets daily by Vlad Novokrestenov
fastmarkets.com
