Bangladesh: Containerized Imported Scrap Trades Remain Slow Amid Limited Trades

Imported scrap trades to Bangladesh remained very slow this week as most suppliers didn’t have sufficient material to offer, with many yards being closed for winter vacations. Inquiries from buyers also remained limited on account of low slow steel market and sufficient inventories. Some industry participants expect the demand to improve by Jan next year with many mills requiring restocking.

The limited offers in the market witnessed another increase on a weekly basis, although buying interest remained significantly lower.

SteelMint’s price assessment for containerized shredded scrap is currently seen in the range of USD 322-325/MT, CFR Chittagong up by USD 5/MT in comparison to last week, however no major deal for shredded in containers was reported, with silence from both suppliers and buyers end.

Trades for HMS scrap remained slightly better. Few bookings for HMS 1&2 from Central America were concluded at USD 295/MT while fresh offers for HMS 1&2 (80:20) presently stand at USD 300/MT CFR Chittagong, up by USD 5-8/MT against last week. HMS 1, on the other hand, observed little inquiries. Few P&S scrap offers stood at USD 315-320/MT CFR, lower than Shredded offers.

Earlier this week, a major steelmaker from Chittagong had booked a USA origin bulk cargo comprising entirely of shredded scrap at USD 325/MT, CFR Chittagong, while the shipment is expected to be in Feb’20.

Ship breaking scrap offers continued to fluctuate at low levels amid low demand from end-users, with the ship yard melting scrap currently being offered at around BDT 29000-29500/MT (USD 343-348) ex Chittagong, while Ship plate (12 mm) prices remained at around BDT 38000/MT (USD 448) ex Chittagong.