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    October 1, 2020

    CRU: Reclassifying Chinese Scrap Imports is Unlikely to Solve Market Tightness

    By CRU Principal Analyst Chris Asgill, from CRU’s Global Steel Trade Service

    China has banned steel scrap imports for the past year as part of its solid waste management policies that affect imports on a wide range of metal scrap and plastic waste. Recently, policymakers announced that a review on these policies will be sped up with the aim to reclassify scrap metal as a resource rather than waste. The industry is keen on a change as the Chinese domestic steel scrap market is tight and prices are high. However, there are two reasons we do not believe policy alterations will change this situation.

    Latest in Prices

    Mills seek more scrap after lower prices fail to attract tons

    Several mills that bought October scrap early last week are still asking for additional supplies, scrap market participants said. The reason: the mills' initial prices did not attract enough of the raw material, they said. A trading source based in northern Ohio said three mills have contacted his firm seeking offers for additional tons. He said the mills asked for offers even if prices were higher than their original buys last week.

    Nucor increases spot HR to $1,240/ton

    Nucor said on Monday, Oct. 12, that its consumer spot price (CSP) for hot-rolled (HR) coil will be $1,240 per short ton (st) this week, a $10/st increase from a week earlier. The CSP for HR coil from California Steel Industries (CSI) on the West Coast will be $1,305/st, up $15/st from the prior week. Nucor is still offering lead times of three to five weeks, according to the letter to customers. You can track mill price announcements on our website. Steel Market Update (SMU) published a weekly price assessment on Tuesday, Oct. 6, showing HR coil prices averaging $1,270/st, up $10/st from the previous week. We will update our prices on the evening of Tuesday, Oct. 13.