US market steel mills and steel scrap dealers Monday continued in negotiations for February scrap, with dealers holding leverage in most regions with limited available supply and steady mill demand for material.
Mill hesitancy coupled with dealer resistance has extended the buy week that started on Thursday.
Mills that were early in the market last week in Detroit and Chicago established a price floor when they took shredded scrap and cut grades down $25/lt and prime scrap down $10/lt.
"Dealers are resisting to some extent and there are sales of prime at sideways," one Midwest trader said. "The export scrap price decrease has happened, but the strong demand has negated any decrease on domestic scrap prices."
As of Monday some dealers have yet to sell any scrap and in Ohio there are mills that have yet to price any scrap.
"We are still working through the market," a Midwest supplier said. "We have no sales off yet. It is looking like sideways on a few busheling deals out there, maybe some stronger (than down $25/lt) numbers on cut grades too."
A Northeast supplier reported an Ohio mill was seeking to buy shredded scrap at down $40 "because he is being offered so much shred."
Similar down $40/lt mill bids were heard in Pittsburgh for shredded scrap and dealers had turned down $280/lt delivered mill for shredded scrap, the same price level Detroit mills were able to buy at on Thursday. The Ohio and Pittsburgh markets were expected to see larger month-on-month price falls after being high-priced in January.
S&P Global Platts narrowed its daily price assessment range on shredded scrap from $280-$290/lt to $285-$290/lt delivered Midwest mill on Monday.
"Down $40 is not going to fly today," another Northeast supplier said. "Today is weird, we are still waiting on some mills. All these mills don't want to be the first ones out [in the market]."
Some dealers have been able to achieve sideways pricing on their prime scrap in the Midwest and others believed mills would eventually pay up money for primes this week.
The Southeast market was still trading late on Monday. Major mills in the area were offering down $15-$20/lt on shredded scrap and cut grades.
"I haven't made any sales yet, but the market has firmed," one local supplier said. "I expect sales will be sideways to up $10 on primes and cuts down $10-$20/lt."
Another Southeast supplier was still going back and forth with mills late Monday indicating that "it will be tomorrow before we get done."
One Southeast dealer was able to wrap up his sales, sold No. 1 busheling at sideways and shredded scrap at down $25/lt, or $295/lt delivered mill.
