November 2, 2021 – Stainless steel price corrections limited. After coal prices were adjusted in China, other products such as stainless steel and nickel also corrected. However, these corrections are very limited. The United States is flying home with a victory in the steel and aluminium dispute and for the EU there could still be some internal trouble in the current solution.
Limited price corrections in stainless steel
The stainless steel futures on the SHFE have experienced some corrections due to the Chinese price adjustments for coal products in the past week. Overall, however, the current price corrections are limited, as the commodity prices relevant for stainless steel remain high. Production is also picking up again in many countries in Asia that had previously remained in a certain corona lockdown. This should increase demand and thus also have an impact on stainless steel prices.
Source: shfe.com.cn
Nickel prices corrected for energy costs
Just like stainless steel prices, nickel prices have reacted to falling coal prices and corrected accordingly. In the case of nickel, too, the corrections are limited purely to energy costs, as the raw material itself remains very scarce and demand is high.
Source: shfe.com.cn, lme.com
United States wins steel and aluminium dispute
The US-EU deal to settle the steel and aluminium dispute is increasingly becoming a win for the United States. EU officials seem to have been looking solely for a solution to prevent tariffs on other US products from being raised on 1 December 2021. A clear victory for the Biden administration in this multi-billion dollar trade dispute.
What makes this deal better for the US?
In order to export to the United States, European steel must be 100% compliant with the Americans’ Melted & Poured regulations – a first, this was previously mandatory but otherwise only statistical information for the United States. In addition, the tariff rate quotas for steel and aluminium are allocated separately for each EU member state according to quantity and products and not for the Union as a whole.
Steel solution could lead to discord in the EU
All in all, this deal is likely to lead to some strife between steel producers and rerollers within the EU, but there is also likely to be a lot to sort out between member states. For example, countries like Germany and Italy, which process a lot of imported material, are excluded from exporting their mixed-origin products to the United States under the Melted & Poured Regulation.
Read also:
- Stainless Espresso: EU-US tariffs: Is everyone happy now? Or not?
- Stainless Espresso: US-EU reach agreement in steel and aluminium dispute
- Stainless Espresso Weekend: Coal, consolidation, scarce magnesium
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