ASIA HRC: Low-priced Russian cargoes shock market

A flurry of low-priced transactions for Russian hot-rolled coil into Vietnam during the week to Friday July 2 has shocked market participants in Asia, causing prices to fall and depress sentiment, sources told Fastmarkets.

The deals follow Russia's announcement on June 24 that it would impose temporary export duties on ferrous and non-ferrous metals sold outside the Eurasian Economic Union from August 1. This included a $115-per-tonne duty on flat hot-rolled steel and rebar from August 1 to December 31, leading market participants to predict a spike in HRC exports in July.
This week, major Russian steelmaker Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel (MMK) sold 90,000-100,000 tonnes of July-shipment HRC at $855-860 per tonne Vietnam, with a major stockist and end users in southern and northern Vietnam purchasing the cargoes. Galvanizers were among the end users buying the material, particularly for heavier gauges.
A large portion of the cargoes were fixed by east Asian traders. Half of the quantity was of SS400-grade, while the other half was of SAE1006 pipe-making grade.

A total of 155,000 tonnes of...

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