[ferro-alloys.com]Japan's largest rebar producer Kyoei Steel said Tuesday that it will raise rebar prices by Yen 2,000/mt ($18/mt) for December contracts. The total hikes by the company for the November and December contracts amount to Yen 4,000/mt.

Osaka-based Kyoei does not release its list prices. Current market prices for base-sized rebar in Osaka are around Yen 68,000-69,000/mt ($602-$611/mt), up Yen 1,000/mt from a month ago, and in Tokyo are around Yen 74,000-75,000/mt, unchanged month on month, distributors said.

Kyoei in a statement said the price gap between rebar and other construction steel produced by electric arc furnaces is wide, so rebar prices need to correct upwards. Also, production costs have been increasing with higher electrode and alloy prices as well as higher delivery charges.

Kyoei added that scrap prices are declining, but the company has to use more higher grade scrap because heavy scrap quality has been worsening. This would further raise production costs.

An Osaka-based distributor said the supply/demand balance of rebars has been tighter, so producers have kept production high.

"Producers are taking strong stances on prices and we need to shift their hike to our sales prices, we expect market prices to rise further, will reach Yen 70,000/mt soon in Osaka, but it is still not high enough to secure profit margins," he said.

（S&P Global Platts）

• [Editor:王可]