"September-October Peak Season" Concludes with Market Cooling, Stainless Steel Scrap Prices May Remain Under Pressure [SMM Stainless Steel Scrap Market Weekly Review]

This week, the price of 304 stainless steel scrap off-cuts in east China fell to 9,150-9,250 yuan/mt; in Foshan, the price of 304 stainless steel scrap off-cuts also weakened to 8,850-9,150 yuan/mt. Currently, calculated by raw material, the production cost of stainless steel using entirely stainless steel scrap is approximately 12,884.21 yuan/mt, while using entirely high-grade NPI is approximately 13,227.63 yuan/mt. On Friday this week, a steel mill in south China adjusted its tax-included purchase price for 304 stainless steel scrap molten steel (96% yield, 8% nickel) to 9,600 yuan/mt.

This week, the September-October peak season officially concluded, and the market entered the traditional consumption off-season. Stainless steel demand remained sluggish, SS futures continued to decline, and the spot price of stainless steel finished products also trended weakly. Affected by overall market weakness, prices for both high-grade NPI and high-carbon ferrochrome moved lower. The price of stainless steel scrap could not remain immune, and recent tightness in tax invoices persisted, leading to sluggish purchase transactions in the market. Although the economic advantage of stainless steel scrap remains significant compared to high-grade NPI, its price has struggled to rise. Overall market expectations are pessimistic, with steel mills facing inverted cost-price ratios, strengthening expectations for production cuts, and both nickel and ferrochrome raw material prices trending weakly. Under these circumstances, stainless steel scrap prices are expected to remain in the doldrums.