Product category:
Engineering Industry Reports and Surveys
News Release from: MEPS (International)
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 06 December 2004
Exchange rates inflate Asian steel
prices
MEPS has published its Asian average carbon steel price forecast for November 2004.
MEPS has published its Asian average carbon steel price forecast for November 2004 The November indices for Asian flat products are up on MEPS predictions - mainly as a result of currency exchange rate tendencies
This article was originally published on Engineeringtalk on 4 Nov 2005 at 8.00am (UK)
Related stories
Stainless crude steel production trends analysed
Global stainless crude steel production is expected to reach 25 million tonnes this year and forecast at 26 million tonnes in 2006, according to MEPS (International).
Global steel industry analysed
The global steel industry has been subject to a number of significant changes since the start of the millennium. This article looks are market trends.
Due to the above, MEPS has uprated its forecasts for uncoated strip mill products.
The plate segment remains firm in most countries and MEPS estimates for next year have been upgraded to reflect the weakness of the US dollar.
MEPS still expects a quite firm first quarter for pricing for strip products but a slow deterioration from Spring 2005 onwards.
Plate figures should stay solid for longer.
Any decrease is likely to commence in the second quarter negotiations.
Prices for coated products took off faster than MEPS expected in Japan.
This, combined with a higher exchange rate, has pushed up the indices above MEPS expectations in November.
These higher figures are likely to be maintained well into the new year.
Price slippage is still predicted late in the first quarter, 2005.
Currency exchange rate movements pushed up MEPS November indices for long products despite little movement in values in national currencies.
MEPS maintains its forecast for a price drift for most products in the coming months as construction activity slows in most parts of the region.
However, MEPS figures have been adjusted in an upward direction as a result of the currency factors.
MEPS forecast indices are based on a constant US dollar exchange rate into the future.
However, a recent decline in the US dollar value against most major currencies has translated into increased figures in all MEPS Carbon Steel Price Forecasts for November - to a greater or lesser degree, depending on region.
This is expected to also impact on the December values.
• MEPS (International): contact details and other news
• Email this article to a colleague
• Register for the free Engineeringtalk email newsletter
• Engineeringtalk Home Page
Search the Pro-Talk network of sites
