Following the slump during March trading, the sentiment is seen to have improved for April trading in the US domestic scrap market.

While prime grade scrap prices are expected to find support from price gains in hot rolled coil and pig iron, an uptick seems unlikely for cut grades as cut grade flow traditionally improves in spring.

US suppliers are also seeking higher prices in major export destinations, Kallanish notes.

On the West Coast, a Taiwanese mill is supporting scrap purchasing prices as well as maintaining its rebar offer price. Offers for US-origin containerised HMS 1&2 80:20 rose to around $355/tonne cfr from $350/t cfr a week earlier.

On the East Coast, the latest deal from the US was concluded at $382/t cfr for HMS 1&2 80:20 last week. However, suppliers are seen to have increased their price targets on Monday, offering the same grade at around $395/t cfr. A US-origin supplier is heard even asking for $400/t cfr. 

However, steel sales in Turkey showed no improvement on Monday although mills increased rebar prices in both domestic and export markets. Although Turkey needs to fulfill April shipment scrap purchases, steel sales are not supportive of higher scrap prices and the availability of scrap seems sufficient to cover Turkey’s requirements. Amid current market conditions, most market players doubt if such values will be accepted by Turkish mills.