Steel prices are likely to rise between
January and March 2006, says an expert.
The prediction came at a seminar on steel in
Dubai, attended by over 200 top officials and
decision makers from the steel industry.
MEsteel.com, Dubai, organised the event in
partnership with UK-based Steel Business
Briefing (SBB).
At the seminar, SBB gave their latest
forecast and analysis of the international steel
markets.
Specifically looking at the key products used
in the construction industry in the
international markets, Mark Wigett of SBB
highlighted the strength of the Wide Flange Beam
markets in the US and Europe.
He said: “Although prices normally weaken
during the winter, stocks in US are low and
mills in Europe are well-booked. Prices are
likely to rise by $/25/t and Euro 30/t during
January to March.”
Wigett added: “Prices could firm further if
demand and supply are well-matched during Q2 and
Q3. Debar is very weak now and prices have
fallen more in the last four weeks.”
Offers of imported material are becoming
cheaper and prices are likely to fall another
$/25-40/t, except in the US, before demand and
prices should increase in Q2. Commodity grades
of MS Plates have also weakened since the start
of Q4, he said.
In the European market, European mills are
reported not to be offering at prices to compete
with imported plate. So further price decreases
of up to USD-40/t are feared until Q2 when
demand may strengthen.
At the seminar, Mesteel.com outlined its
advantages and recent improvements of their B2B
Steel site for Buyers and Sellers in the Middle
East.
Visited by over 400,000 visitors per month,
mesteel.com showcases company profiles of more
than 3,300 steel related members in the Middle
East.
New tools and steel information were added
over the past months on the site, such as steel
import-export-consumption statistics and
technical info on steel products and qualities.
MEsteel's International and Middle East Steel
News are now updated twice daily.
Mesteel.com, provider of exhaustive steel
info and a rich database on steel related
companies in this area, believes it will
increase its member base to 5.000 by next
year.
SBB, headed by Patrick Flockhart, is an
independent publisher, dedicated to providing
quality news and information to the global steel
industry, with headquarters in London and
offices in Shanghai, Singapore, US, Germany,
Brazil and Japan.TradeArabia News
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