Steel import prices up in South America as buyers look beyond China

South American flat steel import prices either rose or held firm during the week ended Friday January 31, while the absence of China from the market drove customers to look for materials from other origins.

The Chinese government postponed the country's return from the lunar new year holiday to February 3, from January 31 originally, amid the outbreak of a coronavirus in Wuhan. Shanghai has extended the holiday by a full week.
Market participants were waiting for China to return fully to the steel market in order to put in new offers for April shipments.
Some sources were initially looking at $20-30 per tonne increases across all materials. Most sources contacted by Fastmarkets, however, said that sentiment was deteriorating, and that the current higher prices seemed to be unsustainable.

Fastmarkets assessed the price for steel hot-rolled coil, import, cfr main ports South America, at $545-560 per tonne on January 31,...

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