Stainless steel transaction prices continue to drift downwards. Further modest reductions are anticipated in the coming months. However, future price cuts are likely to be mainly influenced by changes in the cost of alloying elements.The majority of stainless steelmakers have little more to offer to customers from the available margin for conversion from the value of raw materials to finished product. On domestic sales the margin is currently in the range 850 US dollars to 910 per tonne, depending upon the region. At these levels it is difficult to turn a profit. If a company's order book is predominantly exports, then it is almost impossible to stay out of the red.
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