Romania maintains high spot prices, supported by higher import offers, despite lower sole mill prices
Prices for Romanian rolled products on the spot market remained mostly stable this week, mainly driven by the recent increase in the supply of imported goods amid expected increases in energy prices and transportation costs related to the war in the Middle East. As import prices have risen, local prices have managed to hold steady, while discounts have largely disappeared from the market.
Although overall demand in Romania remains low, market participants are reporting slightly more activity compared to previous weeks, with some Romanian traders starting purchases earlier in the week in anticipation of further price increases. Meanwhile, the only domestic rebar manufacturer that currently sells rebar mainly from existing inventory has reduced its supply in an attempt to boost sales, although market participants note that sales at this level may prove difficult given the still high production costs.
As a result, the only Romanian rebar manufacturer has reduced its offers to 590-595 euros per ton from 610 euros per ton a week ago, while in the spot segment prices for finished rebar are still 590-600 euros per ton from stock.
Meanwhile, a similar stability is observed in the spot wire rod market, where traders offer unchanged prices at 585-590 euros per ton from the warehouse amid low demand.
The import market saw an increase in supplies from most suppliers, although some preferred to keep their supply stable or temporarily withdrew from the market. According to reports, at the beginning of the week, the Bulgarian supplier sold several batches of fittings to Romania at a price of 605-615 euros per ton without VAT, but later increased the supply of fittings to 630-635 euros per ton without VAT. Meanwhile, the Hungarian supplier has decided to keep its offers unchanged from week to week, and its prices are rumored to be 625-630 euros per ton, excluding VAT. Among suppliers from non-EU countries, the Egyptian plant increased its offers for the latest March supply contract to 495-500 euros per ton of rebar and 500-505 euros per ton of wire rod, compared with 485-490 euros per ton and 495-500 euros per ton, respectively. However, no new offers were received this week, as the supplier is reportedly assessing the market situation, and new prices for April shipments are expected next week. Similarly, Turkish suppliers increased their rebar offers to 485-500 euros per ton from 475-485 euros per ton previously, based on the exchange rate of 1 euro = 1.16 US dollars and estimated transportation costs of 15-20