Rebar prices in the UAE have increased marginally by AED 100 per tonne amidst a sharp rise in global steel prices in January.
As per report, local steel is currently being sold at AED 1,950 to AED 2,000 per tonne depending on the payment process.
The increase in local prices compared to December 2009 is lower than the increase in global prices. International steel prices have gone up by around USD 40 per tonne to USD 50 per tonne during the same period.
However a senior official of a local trading company said that local steel mills have not raised prices in tandem with international prices as domestic demand continues to remain weak. There has not been any upward movement in demand locally, especially in Dubai, as compared to the previous year, but Abu Dhabi is comparatively better.
Mr Rizwan Sajan of Danube Building Materials said that the situation in Oman and Bahrain is much better when compared with the UAE. However, demand in the GCC is similar to that of 2009 levels. International steel prices have been increasing due to a hike in raw material prices. He said that "Of late, prices of raw materials have been increasing. However, no one is in a position to predict how steel prices are going to move during 2010."
Meanwhile, traders in the UAE said that rebar imports from Turkey in January have almost come to a standstill. Mr Kushal Khanna senior manager of Emirates Rebar said that it does not make any economic sense today to import rebars from Turkey or any other market. Rebar in Turkey is priced at around USD 540 per tonne.
UAE based traders warned that it would be difficult for imports from Turkey to go back to previous levels unless the local prices and demand increase simultaneously. Mr Sajan said that we have stopped importing from Turkey for the time being. Locally produced steel is more than sufficient to meet demand here.