Ferrous Scrap Price Increases to 36,000 y/t in Osaka

Ferrous scrap market price is increasing around Osaka. Local electric furnace steel makers are purchasing ferrous scrap at 35,000-36,000 yen per tonne for H2, which increased by 1,000 yen or 3% from the beginning of this month. Hyundai Steel, South Korean biggest electric furnace steel maker, raised its purchasing price for ferrous scrap from Japan. Tokyo Steel Manufacturing, Japanese largest electric furnace steel maker, also raised its scrap purchase price at each works other than Utsunomiya works at the end of last week. Electric furnace steels around Himeji, Hyogo followed the hike. In Osaka, Kishiwada Steel announced the price hike. Hyundai Steel offered the purchasing price for Japanese ferrous scrap at FOB 36,500 yen per tonne for H2 last week, up by 1,000 yen from the previous week. Large dealer source said Hyundai Steel seemed to prefer Japanese ferrous scrap when US ferrous scrap price hit record high for both domestic market and export. Tokyo Steel Manufacturing raised its ferrous scrap purchasing price by 500 yen per tonne at all works except for Utsunomiya on March 10, when ferrous scrap export price was increasing. Its purchase price increased to 37,000 yen per tonne for H2 at Okayama works, up by 12,000 yen or 48% from a year earlier. Other steel makers in Himeji area followed the hike by Tokyo Steel Manufacturing by approximately 1,000 yen. Yamato Steel raised the official purchasing price to 35,500 yen for H2 on Saturday.