European domestic rebar and section market expects price increase

A producer who was not on the market last week said that it increased its offer prices by €30/mt on 1 March due to energy and rising scrap costs.

"Some factories are catching up, so I don't really see it as a price increase," said a producer based in Southern Europe. "It's still unclear where the market is, we need to see it next week." The producer reported a viable level of €960-970/mt for delivery to Northwest Europe for category 1 medium sections and said that the prices of €940/mt are now behind.

A Benelux-based distributor has set the applicable levels for category 1 midsections at €950-960/delivery to Northwest Europe.

Also, Benelux-based trader said customers do not need an urgent reservation for rebar due to restocking in late 2022 and early 2023. He said that import volumes to Europe are expected to be low this year as Turkish mills are currently focusing on the domestic rebar market, which in addition to rising scrap costs supports European mills' prices, while energy costs will remain high.

The Northwest European rebar valuation was quoted as €705/mt EXW and remained stable this week as of March 1. The weekly medium profile assessment increased by €5 week on week to €945-955/mt for European delivery.