market analysis
Prices ease after months
of strong growth
Traders grateful for bullish business as global
economy recovers from pandemic slump.
44
a u T h o r Robin Latchem
A period of sustained growth in prices
since the late summer had by late
January turned into a decline.
Shipments of HMS 80/20 heavy steel
growth in recent weeks. The US scrap
market had been particularly strong
by the year-end with the Bureau of
Labor Statistics showing iron and steel
scrap rising 31.3% in December, year-
on-year to December 2019 and up
25.8% on the month before, the high-
est monthly increase of 2020. Order
books for most steel producers were
scrap from northern Europe to Turkey,
which cost around US$ 293 per tonne
in November before jumping to US$
399 in December and then hitting US$
432 early in early January, were
reported to have dipped 10% later in
the month. Across the Atlantic, US
export scrap prices had also moved
down after a period of considerable
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