Stainless Steel Scrap Remains Economically Disadvantaged, Prices Hold Steady Awaiting Peak Season [SMM Weekly Stainless Steel Scrap Market Review]

Published: Aug 29, 2025 17:01

Save

This week, the price of 304 stainless steel scrap off-cuts in east China first stabilized and then dropped slightly to 9,700-9,800 yuan/mt, while in Foshan, the price rose slightly to 9,450-9,750 yuan/mt. Currently, the production cost of stainless steel using 100% stainless steel scrap is approximately 13,535.53 yuan/mt, while the cost using 100% high-grade NPI is around 13,486.8 yuan/mt. A steel mill in south China did not adjust its tender price for stainless steel scrap procurement this week.

This week, driven by macro tailwinds, SS futures halted their decline and strengthened, lifting stainless steel finished product prices in tandem. The price of high-grade NPI climbed as steel mills raised tender prices amid expectations of increased stainless steel planned production in September. Although the price of high-grade NPI continued to rise, narrowing the economic disadvantage of stainless steel scrap, the latter remained less competitive. Throughout the week, downstream steel mills adopted a cautious approach to procuring stainless steel scrap, preventing its price from rising alongside other raw materials. Instead, prices remained stable overall, even pulling back slightly. However, as the September-October peak season approaches, anticipated increases in stainless steel production schedules may boost demand for stainless steel scrap, potentially curbing further price declines.

Data Source Statement: Except for publicly available information, all other data are processed by SMM based on publicly available information, market communication, and relying on SMM‘s internal database model. They are for reference only and do not constitute decision-making recommendations.

For any inquiries or to learn more information, please contact: lemonzhao@smm.cn

For more information on how to access our research reports, please contact:service.en@smm.cn

Related News

15 hours ago

Before the holiday, the black chain is unlikely to see a trend-driven market [SMM Steel Industry Chain Weekly Report].

This week, ferrous metals were in the doldrums, with coking coal and coke staging a mid-week rise. At the beginning of the week, financial markets experienced sharp fluctuations, dragging down sentiment in the ferrous chain and leading to a pullback in futures. Mid-week, Indonesia's cut to coke production quotas drove coking coal and coke futures to lead the gains, though the impact was more pronounced on thermal coal, while coking coal's rise was largely sentiment-driven and short-lived. In the latter part of the week, finished products continued their seasonal inventory buildup, and support from the raw material side weakened, causing the entire ferrous chain to pull back. In the spot market, with the Chinese New Year holiday approaching, purchasing activity slowed down further, with end-users only making limited, as-needed purchases at low prices.

15 hours ago

16 hours ago

MMi Daily Iron Ore Report (February 6)

Today, the DCE iron ore futures continued to hit bottom today, with the most-traded contract I2605 closing at 760.5 yuan/mt, down 1.23% from the previous trading day. Spot prices fell by 5–10 yuan/mt compared to the previous trading day.

16 hours ago

[SMM Chromium Daily Review] Inquiries and Transactions Weakened, Chromium Market Showed Mediocre Performance Before the Holiday

[SMM Chrome Daily Review: Trading and Inquiries Weakened, Chrome Market Showed Mediocre Performance Before the Holiday] February 6, 2026: Today, the ex-factory price of high-carbon ferrochrome in Inner Mongolia was 8,500-8,600 yuan/mt (50% metal content), flat MoM from the previous trading day...

16 hours ago