Steel raw materials
Overview
Argus’ comprehensive coverage of the global ferrous markets provide independent price assessments, news and market analysis for iron ore, coking coal, ferrous scrap, pig iron and steel.
Our global team of experts in China, Singapore, the UK and US deliver over 300 domestic and seaborne price assessments along with detailed market commentary on a daily basis to ensure our clients have complete mine to mill price coverage.
The ferrous portfolio includes established Argus price indices for 62pc and 65pc iron ore fines, Turkish ferrous scrap imports, and our fob Australia and cfr China premium hard coking coal indices.
Latest steel raw materials news
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Assad regime end to alter Mena steel trade flow
Assad regime end to alter Mena steel trade flow
London, 10 December (Argus) — The ousting of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad is likely to open up export opportunities for Turkish steelmakers, but this hinges on the political stabilisation of the country. The fall of the al-Assad regime came after opposition forces led by militant group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) launched a sudden military offensive in late November, seizing some of the country's biggest cities over the past week. A former al-Qaeda affiliate, HTS is thought to maintain close ties with Turkey, along with the Syrian National Army (SNA), while the outgoing Assad regime was a close ally of Iran and Russia. Iran not only sold rebar and wire-rod products on occasion to Syria, but also used the country as a transit route for its business into Lebanon and Turkey. With the toppling of the al-Assad regime, steel trade from Iran to Syria has been halted as sellers wait for further developments. Turkish steel mills are expected to benefit from the regime overthrow, and to fill the potential gap left by Iran, market participants said. In a response to this, various construction and iron and steel companies listed on the Istanbul stock exchange appreciated significantly when the markets opened on Monday morning. Rebuilding efforts are likely to present sales opportunities for Turkish longs producers, located in the southern Iskenderun region of the country, market participants said. Turkey exported 17,900t of rebar to Syria in October, an annual increase of 80pc. Industry sources noted the considerable potential for Turkish suppliers to ramp up sales, depending on the developments in Syria. In addition to the political instability, airstrikes were carried by Israel on military assets in Syria in the past couple of days. Market sources expressed a consensus that the rise in stock prices since 9 December in Turkey is speculative. Domestic rebar prices in the Iskenderun region in southern Turkey picked up today and could pick up across the country tomorrow. The Syrian regime change was cited as a smaller factor, alongside the signs of a recovery in global steel prices owing to favourable policies signalled by the Chinese government. Turkish domestic rebar buyers have delayed restocking this winter until signs of a price recovery emerged. "People need to see finance first for construction, the country has no cash so if some other country covers the finance, then demand might increase," one market participant said. HTS is currently designated as a terrorist organisation by the US and various European countries. At the time of writing the UK is reviewing its prescription of HTS as a terrorist group. By Carlo Da Cas and Brendan Kjellberg-Motton Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Moselle river crash to have limited impact on AM
Moselle river crash to have limited impact on AM
London, 10 December (Argus) — A collision at a lock gate in the river Moselle near the German-Luxembourg border will have a limited impact on nearby steelmaker ArcelorMittal, the company said, despite ship transportation likely to be disrupted for months. On Sunday 8 December, a vessel carrying 1,500t of scrap metal en route to Mertert, Luxembourg, collided with and broke the lock gate at Muden, southwest Germany. The accident has resulted in the halting of continuous shipping traffic on the Moselle, the German Waterways and shipping Authority (WSA) said. ArcelorMittal said the accident should have a limited impact on its Luxembourg business, and is currently working on alternative short-and-medium term transport solutions to offset disruptions caused to incoming and outgoing flows. "To date, only 10pc of scrap supplies to ArcelorMittal's electric furnaces in Luxembourg and 10pc of shipments pass through the port of Mertert," the steelmaker said. Work is already under way by the authorities to mend the broken lock, but it is estimated repairs will not be completed until March 2025. Under WSA estimates around 70 vessels are stuck in that area of the Moselle up to the French border, no longer able to leave the Moselle valley towards the Rhine. Authorities also said they are looking at ways to release the trapped ships so they can leave the river in the direction of the Rhine. A meeting is scheduled for Wednesday to discuss whether this could be done, the WSA added. Gummed vessels and halted shipping transportation along the Moselle will probably have some impact on scrap metal transport logistics in the region, market participants told Argus . The Moselle is a main waterway to Luxembourg with metal transported via barges. Large scrap metal recycler Theo Steil operates one of its larger yards in Trier, a town in southwestern Germany, which the Moselle runs through. By Corey Aunger Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Tight supply fuels Indian interest in wire rod imports
Tight supply fuels Indian interest in wire rod imports
Mumbai, 6 December (Argus) — Interest in steel wire rod imports is increasing in India owing to limited domestic availability, delivery snags and high prices set by primary producers, according to industry sources. Unspecified quantities of Chinese low-carbon wire rod were booked for $515-520/t cfr Mumbai, excluding value-added tax, in the past few weeks, sources in both China and India told Argus . High-carbon wire rod was also heard to have been purchased from China recently, although this could not be confirmed. The booking follows reduced supply from state-controlled long products manufacturer Rashtriya Ispat Nigam (RINL), according to a Mumbai-based long products trading firm. RINL at present is grappling with financial difficulties and raw material shortages, which has taken a toll on its production. Many participants have questioned this purchase, as no Chinese mill has a Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) certificate required for exporting wire rod to India. Non-BIS material can be cleared by customs only if the material is used to manufacture goods that will be exported. The booking has been made under the advance licence scheme, which allows for such non-BIS imports, a source said. But there are only a handful of wire manufacturers that export their product and can use imported wire rods, according to market participants. At a trade fair in Mumbai last month, wire manufacturers said they were increasingly seeking alternatives to domestic primary wire rod as high input costs were squeezing their margins. High-carbon wire rod was priced at 57,000-58,000 rupees/t ($672-684/t) by major domestic producers on a delivered basis in western India, sources said. Chinese offers stood at $570-580/t cfr India for high-carbon wire rod a few weeks ago, but have now fallen to $560/t cfr, a trading source said. Wire manufacturers focused on domestic sales were turning to secondary wire rod, which was nearly 20pc cheaper than primary material, according to a participant at the Mumbai trade fair. But trading companies and consumers pointed to availability as the bigger issue, with only a few major primary producers dominating the wire rod market. Securing a regular and timely supply of wire rod from primary mills has become a major challenge, causing supply chain disruptions for end-users, they said. "The price is one factor, but availability is also a key issue. Mills are unreliable when it comes to allocation and delivery of the material," a wire manufacturer said. "This has always been the case but not to the extent seen recently. Now supply concerns have become worse because of RINL's issues." RINL's finished steel output fell by 26pc on the year to 1.6mn t from April-October, according to provisional data from the steel ministry's joint plant committee. Another wire manufacturer said it had not imported wire rod for more than a year, but was now open to cheaper imports to protect its margins. For some finished products, such as automobile parts, it is essential to use wire rod from primary producers but imported or secondary material could be used to manufacture some other products, a manufacturing firm executive said. Long products amount to only a small portion of India's overall steel imports, which are dominated by hot-rolled coil and other flat products. From April-October this year, India imported about 49,300t of wire rod — including alloy, non-alloy and stainless steel products — an increase of more than 30pc on the year, according to data from the steel ministry's Joint Plant Committee. This made up less than 1pc of India's overall finished steel imports during the seven months. By Amruta Khandekar Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Newly agreed EU, Mercosur FTA faces uphill battle
Newly agreed EU, Mercosur FTA faces uphill battle
Montevideo, 6 December (Argus) — The EU and South America's Mercosur closed a free-trade agreement (FTA) nearly 25 years in the making, but there is still a long road to ratification. Uruguayan president Luis Lacalle and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen announced the deal at a Mercosur summit in Montevideo, the Uruguayan capital. The presidents of the three other Mercosur founding members — Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay — were present. The FTA will remove tariffs on more than 90pc of goods among the members. Von der Leyen called the agreement a historic milestone that would benefit 700mn consumers. She said the agreement "is not only a trade agreement, but also a political necessity." Lacalle said "an agreement of this kind is not a magical solution, but an opportunity." Leaders recognized that the agreement still has major hurdles to clear as it requires approval from member states. The agreement will go to legal review and translation in the next month in view of its future signing, according to the Mercosur-EU declaration. While the Mercosur countries are in favor of the agreement, opposition is strong in France, Poland and several smaller EU states. Argentinian president Javier Milei, who supports the agreement, criticized Mercosur as a block. "Mercosur, which was born with the idea of deepening our commercial ties, ended up like a prison that does not allow its members to take advantage of their comparative advantages or export potential," he said. Van der Leyen said that more than 60,000 businesses, half of them small, export to Mercosur. The EU exported $59bn to Mercosur in 2023, while Mercosur's four founding members shipped $57bn to the EU. She also stressed the importance of EU investment in Mercosur, including in sustainable mining, renewable energy and sustainable forestry. Brazilian president Luiz Lula da Silva said during the summit that the region had to take advantage of its resources, including agriculture and energy. The four Mercosur countries are major food producers, including crops such as corn, soy and sugarcane, used for biofuels. Brazil is the world's top soy producer, while Argentina is third, Paraguay sixth and Uruguay in the 14th spot. Bolivia, which joined Mercosur in July, is the 10th producer. Brazil is a major mineral producer and Argentina is slowly beginning to strengthen its mining sector. It has the world's second-largest lithium resources. Argentina is also beginning to monetize its unconventional gas formation, Vaca Muerta, the second largest in the world with 308 trillion cf of reserves. It is working on different LNG projects, with a focus on exports to Europe. The Mercosur countries also have in common plans for low-carbon hydrogen production, which also see the EU as an export market for value-added products, such as fertilizers. By Lucien Chauvin Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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