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| Price Of Ferro-Silicon In Chukyo Area Has Risen To Yen 100,000 / Ton Delivered to Mills |
| = The Price Offered From China Is Still Rising Gradually |
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The Yen price of ferro-silicon to be sold in domestic market of Japan has risen further in Chukyo area during last week to this week and, as a matter of fact, ferro-silicon has been contracted at Yen 100,000 per ton delivered to mills for shipment in a single month of June, having risen by Yen 20,000 per ton compared with that sold in the previous month - May. The case, which price of ferro-silicon sold in domestic market has reached a level of Yen 100,000 per ton, is that since April - June quarter of 2004, when price of this ferro-alloy had risen to a level of Yen 120,000 per ton delivered to mills. An impression, which a sharp rise of price for ferro-silicon offered from China has made a pause, was seen in last week but Chinese ferro-silicon is being offered again at US$900 per ton CIF Japan from the beginning of this week. Therefore, price of ferro-silicon has been now normalized on the latter half of US$800 CIF. This aspect is due to a view that a shortage of actual cargoes will still continue in China. The deliveries of ferro-silicon to steel mills in China have suffered from a shortage and the parties concerned are now rather in interested in negotiation of price for Chinese ferro-silicon to be shipped in August - September in order to secure actual cargoes. The State Council ( National Development and Reform Commission ) of China is considering to raise again duty on export of ferro-silicon by 5% but any concrete announcement of this subject is so far not released. However, a live charcoal to make a fire is still smoldering. On the other hand, an attitude for purchase of ferro-silicon taken by steel mills of Japan has changed. Tokyo Steel Manufacturing so far held a tender to purchase ferro-silicon but has now changed their policy for this purchase, which is to secure actual cargoes of ferro-silicon held by trading companies through an individual negotiation with each of them in order to cope with a scarcity of suitable cargoes. A decline of ferro-silicon supplied from Russia to Japan is remarkable. Owing to the fact that Japanese side insisted on purchase of Russian ferro-silicon at a discounted price, Russian side decreased the quantity of ferro-silicon supplied by them to Japan in 2005 to 27,000 tons as a substantial reduction from 60,000 - 70,000 tons per annum as so far supplied from Russia to Japan and an aftereffect of this reduction has caused an inability to increase the quantity of ferro-silicon to be supplied from Russia to Japan in 2006. Ukrainian producers have been decreasing their exports of ferro-silicon for Russia from 2005 and, consequently, Russian producers have been forced to secure the quantity of ferro-silicon to be required from domestic market of Russia. Brazil exported 63,000 tons of ferro-silicon for Japan in 2005 but, apart from the long term contracts concluded by JFE Steel ( with Inonibras ) and Nippon Steel ( with Silbasa ) on supplies of ferro-silicon, it seems to be hardly possible to expect an increase of ferro-silicon to be exported from Brazil to Japan. Therefore, Japan has plunged into the diagram at present, having relied the supply only upon Chinese ferro-silicon. It needs a certain time to convert electric furnaces so far operated for production of silico-manganese or silicon metal to produce ferro-silicon. Accordingly, it is necessary for the parties concerned to have a time of 2 - 3 months at least in order to see an effect of this conversion and a hot summer is anticipated to continue in this year because of a short supply of ferro-silicon. |
| last modified : Mon 19 Jun, 2006 [10:48] |
