Sentiments in the ex-Russia basic pig iron (BPI) have remained bearish due to weak demand and negative signs in the scrap segment. The SteelOrbis reference price for ex-Russia BPI has remained stable over the past week at $330-350/mt FOB, but this is after the previous drop by $20/mt since the middle of October.
In Europe, the tradable level has been stable at $380/mt CFR, translating to $350/mt FOB Black Sea. but no new deals have been reported over the past week. Russian suppliers have already started sales for the next year’s EU quota, but the total volume sold has been much lower than targeted by the mills.
In other sales destinations, the tradable levels have been lower. For instance, negotiations for up to 60,000 mt of Russian pig iron have been in place in India with sellers targeting $370-380/mt CFR, in line with previous sales. This level is equivalent to $330-340/mt FOB Black Sea.
Also, in Turkey, some Russian mills have been offering at $340-350/mt FOB or $365-370/mt on CFR basis, but, given the weak trading recently, this level has already been assessed as difficult to achieve. At least two mills have been ready to provide $350-360/mt CFR for Turkish importers, which corresponds to $330-340/mt FOB for medium-size lots.