S KOREA STEEL SCRAP: Mills swoop in to book Japanese scrap at flat prices

South Korean steel mills were able to secure deals for Japanese heavy scrap at largely stable prices over the past week, capitalizing on the mixed outlook in east Asian scrap markets.

The direction of the Japanese market was unclear at the start of the week, sources said, with Turkey still absent from booking and a rising number of Japanese heavy scrap cargoes being offered.
One Japanese trader told Fastmarkets on Wednesday that he believed the market had "hit the ceiling", while a second trader even said on the same day that he predicted a price drop on H2, due to high supply and quiet markets in Taiwan and Vietnam.
"After seeing Turkey coming back into the market, Japanese suppliers changed their mind again" and raised prices, a Singaporean scrap trader said.

By this point, however, several South Korean mills...

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