French HRC Steel prices rise significantly in early May

FRANCE May 25 2016 4:22 PM     

PARIS (Scrap Register): French  hot rolled coil selling figures rose significantly, in early May, said MEPS  International in a snippet. A number of suppliers claim there is no capacity  available for additional orders before the summer. A further price hike is  anticipated next month, by those mills that still have  availability.

Commodity plate selling figures soared. Some re-rolling  mills are reported to have temporarily stopped quoting because of expanding  delivery lead times and a lack of visibility on slab prices. Meanwhile, a lack  of material at the ports allowed local producers to substantially hike cold  rolled coil transaction values.

Supply of coated coil is tight. Some  large users of this product have been forced to source more expensive Chinese  material. French spot prices rose sharply.

Increases were noted for  drawing quality wire rod in France. Similarly, recoil numbers advanced  significantly, month-on-month. Order books are filling up more quickly now, even  though activity remains weak in some sectors. Availability is  problematic.

June mill order books are three quarters full, for  structural sections, and some stockholders are placing orders without agreeing  prices. However, end-user activity is sluggish. Demand is mainly fuelled by low  inventories and speculative purchasing.