Romanian spot sheet steel market remains calm with stable supply amid declining business activity
There were no signs of improvement in the Romanian spot market of rolled products over the past week, while supply remained stable. This ongoing lull and price stability are largely attributed to the start of the August holidays, which slowed both business operations and import activity. Despite a slight increase in import prices, mainly due to ArcelorMittal's upward adjustments in previous weeks, these changes have not yet affected domestic prices for flat rolled products in Romania. Spot market offers remain stable, with some flexibility in pricing for high volume orders, as sluggish sales are expected to persist through the end of August.
As a result, reasonable prices for domestic hot-rolled sheet (HRS) on the spot market currently amount to 700-720 euros per ton.a warehouse that hasn't changed since last week. However, traders are reportedly offering discounts of 10-15 euros per ton to serious buyers.
Similarly, the prices of cold rolled sheet (CRS) also remain unchanged week after week, amounting to about 825-835 euros per ton from the warehouse.
Meanwhile, in the import market, ArcelorMittal's recent price increase has led to moderate price increases from other suppliers. This week, Ukrainian supplies for HRS and CRS increased by 5-10 euros per ton, reaching 590-605 euros per ton and 680-695 euros per ton, respectively, for shipments in August–September. A similar upward trend is observed in the Turkish HRC offerings, but this is primarily due to rising prices in China. According to reports, Turkish FOB prices are currently 530-550 dollars per ton, and the cost of transportation is estimated at 15-20 euros per ton, so prices for delivery to Romania in September will be approximately 480-500 euros per ton, compared with 465-480 euros per ton last week. However, Romanian buyers are still hesitant to purchase imported goods from outside the EU, as shipments will only be allowed under the next round of EU import quotas, which will begin on October 1. Many people believe that under such conditions it is still too early to start replenishing supplies.
Steelorbis.com