On Monday, September 28, prices for hot-rolled steel coils in Northern Europe and Italy rose slightly, but trading activity in both markets remained low due to the cautious approach of buyers.
In Northern Europe, market participants reported no new orders, and high inventory levels continued to deter distributors and service centers from active purchases. One of the buyers said that the factories offered the material for 760-770 euros per ton with delivery, but called these benchmarks unreasonable.
"Absolutely no activity. This is just wishful thinking on the part of the factories," the source said.
As a result, these suggestions were not taken into account when calculating the daily index.
According to the same buyer, the acceptable level was 740-750 euros per ton with delivery, and he called 750 euros per ton the absolute ceiling for any negotiations in the current conditions. A source among sellers also outlined a realistic operating range at the level of 740-750 euros per ton with delivery.
"Excess stocks on the market are still quite large, and it takes more time to reduce them. Obviously, this reduces the need for fresh steel both from factories and imports," one of the sellers told Fastmarkets. "The situation remains a wait-and-see situation."
As a result, the Fastmarkets daily index for hot-rolled coils in the domestic Northern European exw market on Monday, September 28, amounted to 745 euros per ton, which is 3.33 euros higher than on Friday, September 25, when the indicator was 741.67 euros per ton.
The indicator was unchanged from last week and increased by 3.75 euros per ton compared to the previous month.
In Italy, trading activity also remained subdued due to cautious purchases in the secondary market.
One of the buyers mentioned an acceptable price level in the range of 730-745 euros per ton from the warehouse.
"This is the limit that the factories have reached. It will be difficult to raise prices further," the buyer said.
Another source among buyers pointed to an achievable level slightly higher — 740-750 euros per ton from the warehouse.
As a result, the Fastmarkets daily index for hot-rolled coils in the Italian exw domestic market on Monday, September 28, amounted to 741.25 euros per ton, which is 3.75 euros higher than on Friday, September 25, when the indicator was 737.50 euros per ton.
During the week, the index rose by 7.50 euros per ton, and compared with a month earlier, it added 23.75 euros per ton.
