Steel exports from the Middle East, CIS and India are expected to be the main price setters in Asia in 2018, as production cuts in China over most of the first quarter leave a gaping hole for them to continue to wrestle their way in.
Steelmakers in India, Turkey and the Middle East will likely find it easier to raise their offers this year due to Chinese steel products losing their competitiveness, with most mills in China preferring to focus on the more lucrative domestic market. The only consideration that these non-Chinese mills have is how much margins they are willing to forgo in order to move cargoes to the Asian market. In the billet segment, for instance, Iran-origin offers to Thailand are expected to influence buyers' bid levels this year, with these products set to remain the most competitive in the spot market."Iran-origin offers will be one of the most crucial factors for the Asian spot market as buyers will always look to Iran-origin cargoes to set their bids," a trader in Southeast Asia told Metal Bulletin.Offers of cargoes from the Middle East and the CIS into the key destinations of Indonesia and the...