[Ferro-Alloys.com] UK steelmaker British Steel is hiking structural sections prices by £30/t effective from 1 August, it told customers today in a letter obtained by Argus.

 

The company cited further increases in raw material costs as justification for the move. Another leading European mill is expected to follow suit next week with an increase of a similar magnitude.

 

Sections prices in the UK have dissipated quickly over recent months, with British Steel adding a shift at its Teesside beam mill despite weak demand levels as it looked to reduce costs per tonne. The company was widely rumoured on social media to be offering semi-finished and finished steel into the Chinese market in recent months. It has also sold into Europe at competitive prices.

 

Sections prices have fallen as low as £430-440/t delivered, according to buy-side sources, despite rises in scrap and iron ore.

 

Influential UK longs trader All Steels Trading said in a note to its customers that the government's "Get Britain Building Campaign" appeared to be a top priority and bodes well for steel demand. In the note, sent before British Steel's UK announcement, it said: "An increase on structural sections prices for the UK… has to be just around the corner."

 

Source: Argusmedia