South American steel import prices dip as mills accept lower bids

Import prices for flat-rolled steel in South America softened in the week ended Friday January 22 with some Chinese mills accepting lower bids from clients.

"Some small-sized, privately owned mills in China are taking lower bids as long as they're in cash payment, in order to fund [their operations]," one trader source told Fastmarkets.
"Last week and this week," a source at a mill added, "we saw a wide gap between offer prices from Chinese private mills and the major Chinese mills."
Fastmarkets' price assessment on Friday for steel hot-rolled coil, import, cfr main ports South America, was down week on week by $5-15 per tonne to $725-795 per tonne, from $740-800 per tonne.

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