The European market for long pipes remains sluggish, and higher energy prices may lead to higher prices for Italian fittings.
Against the background of a general slowdown in all European steel markets, from recycled steel to rolled steel, the long products segment in Europe also remained sluggish with a slight downward trend last week. However, there are rumors about a possible price recovery, at least as far as rebar prices in Italy are concerned.
Taking into account the words of a representative of an Italian steel mill and comparing them with the opinion of one of his colleagues, Italian steel producers have the following opinion: expect rebar prices to recover. Both sources reported that the increase in electricity prices has a serious impact on production costs, and therefore they doubt that such a low level can persist much longer. According to available data, local rebar prices in Italy are at the level of 240-250 euros per ton from the manufacturer (505-515 euros per ton from the manufacturer, including the usual additional costs), which is about 10 dollars lower than in the previous month. Although electricity prices have roughly returned to the levels observed in early June, and today, on June 27, they amount to 118 euros./MWh, after a peak of 135 euros/The MWh recorded on June 23 is undoubtedly the highest in the entire European Union: over the past week, average electricity prices in Italy reached 126 euros./MWh, compared to 57 euros/MWh in France, 93 euros/MWh in Spain and 61 euros/MWh in Germany.
In addition, the Italian long line market is experiencing a logistical crisis. "The shortage of trucks is more acute than in any other year, and waiting too long[to buy]can lead to customers not being able to receive their orders on time," commented a representative of the Italian factory. However, according to a local trader, it is the oversupply of rebar that forces end users to maintain low inventories and place timely orders, as they know they can receive the material in a short time.
However, it is likely that these factors, combined with the inevitable production shutdowns, will lead to higher prices in the Italian long products market, where at the moment wire rod prices remain stable at 620-635 euros per ton of high-quality wire rod for drawing and 605-620 euros per ton of high-quality mesh wire rod, unchanged for a week. one week at a time.
No changes were found in the export markets, where the average prices for rebar and wire rod from Greece were reported to be 575 euros per tonne FOB and 570 euros per tonne FOB, respectively, unchanged week after week, and export prices for rebar from Spain to UK ports were reported to be around 550-555 euros per ton