17 February 2025 – Asian stainless steel prices rose again on Monday after prices for nickel ore and nickel pig iron increased. Ferrous scrap in short supply worldwide. US reporting season with strong results.
US reporting season with strong results
The US reporting season is drawing to a close and is showing consistently positive developments. So far, companies have beaten earnings estimates by an average of more than six per cent. Particularly pleasing: earnings growth for the S&P 500 is likely to be around 15 per cent in the fourth quarter – a level last seen three years ago. Excluding energy companies, the increase is an impressive 18 per cent.
Stainless steel prices rise again in Asia
Asian stainless steel prices continued to rise on Monday, rising by around 0.5 per cent, having already recorded gains on Friday due to higher commodity prices for Indonesian nickel ore (+5.6 per cent). The resulting rise in nickel pig iron (NPI) prices continued today, Monday. NPI prices have thus improved by more than 3.1% since the beginning of February.
Ferrous scrap in short supply worldwide
According to market reports, ferrous scrap has been in increasingly short supply in Europe and the UK for some time. Recycling companies’ stocks are now said to be at historic lows after many scrap consumers, such as steelworks, replenished their stocks at the end of 2024. This ongoing shortage has recently been particularly evident in the sharp rise in imports of stainless steel scrap, NPI and stainless steel slabs into the European Union.
The increasing enforcement of scrap export bans in many countries and growing demand, e.g. in Turkey, means that the availability of ferrous scrap is becoming increasingly scarce and free trade is being further restricted.
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Disclaimer: Many things here represent our opinion. Others are information from the Internet. We can therefore never claim to be correct or complete. And never base a business decision solely on the news you receive from us.
