Summary of Southeast Asian Steel Billet Market from March 1st to March 8th

This week(March 1st to March 8th), Southeast Asian square billet quotations slightly strengthened. At the beginning of the week, it was heard that an order with a specification of 5sp was sold to the Philippines at a price of $535 per ton CFR Manila A1011 DS Type A steel . After the middle of the week, it was heard that there were similar specifications of resources quoted at $535 per ton CFR Manila, and there were fewer inquiries from Filipino buyers. On Friday, we learned that a billet with a specification of 5sp was quoted to the Philippines at $543 per ton CFR Manila, and the buyer's counteroffer was not higher than $525 per ton CFR. This week, the A1011 DS Type A steel demand from Filipino buyers has weakened compared to the previous two weeks. Considering the upcoming rainy season in the Philippines, we predicts that there is still some room for further decline in demand from Filipino buyers. After the Indonesian election, there has been some recovery in local market demand, but overall demand is still relatively low. we has learned that the current price difference between steel billets and wire rods in Indonesia is about $15/ton, with low profits. In addition, there are no obvious signs of improvement in local infrastructure in Indonesia, so steel mills are more cautious in selecting billets. This week, a mainstream steel plant in Indonesia quoted a FOB price of $520 per ton for billets with a specification of 3sp, which has remained stable in the past three weeks. In the Vietnamese market, local scrap steel prices in Vietnam have decreased this week. A mainstream steel plant in Vietnam has lowered its quotation for billets with a specification of 3sp to $520/ton FOB, a decrease of $10/ton compared to the previous week A1011 DS Type A steel.