TEX reported that the world's slab export negotiations are inactive on shipments in the January to March quarter of 2010.
Buyers indicate few moves to negotiate for new deals, a situation where they are believed to have finished slab purchases to meet immediate requirements.
As far as integrated steelmakers are concerned, they see the advantage of exporting finished products such as HR coils rather than slabs because they enjoy more inquiries for finished products than what they plan to put out. As a result, they are shy of export deals for slabs.
Besides, the world's transaction prices of blast furnace feed look set to rise in and after April 2010 even though contract negotiations between suppliers and integrated steelmakers have yet to start on shipments in fiscal 2010. In that event, it is considered certain that the world's slab export prices will advance accordingly. Therefore, some integrated steelmakers see no need for hasty offers of new slab exports in the belief that buyers will take action sooner or later to secure slabs anew before slab prices go up.
According to market sources, the world's slab transaction prices hold stable on the whole at present even though low prices are reported for slab exports out of Russia and Ukraine. On offer to Asia are slab exports out of Brazil, in which low offer prices are forecast to disappear before long. Meanwhile, Japan's integrated steelmakers are said to have offered slab exports to the rest of East Asia at prices of close to USD 400 per tonne CNF.
With dormant buyers and inactive sellers, offer prices differ considerably from bids in the world's slab deals for January-March shipments next year. Integrated steelmakers are standing pat on prices on offer, with no move to concede. They favor holding back on slab exports as they see bids rising gradually in their HR coil exports under negotiation for Q1 shipments next year.