Posted on 21 Aug 2018
The price of rebar in Germany is staying at its July level, while buyers are still bemoaning bottlenecks in transport capacities.
The current average of the base price is seen by and large at €320/tonne ($366) delivered, “…with €300 on the lower limit for large volumes, and possibly €330 when you want to make sure you get it very fast,” one managing director tells Kallanish.
After softening throughout the second quarter, the level of €300/t was reached back in June, but then interrupted by a dip in early July, which many may not have noticed. “Because of cheap imports, domestic mills made concessions to snatch orders, so that the price was down to €270/t,” one buyer says of a period that lasted barely more than one week. “But once the school holidays kicked in and some mills had summer closures, books were back to full,” he adds.
According to one manager in North Rhine-Westphalia, troubles with transportation remain the big issue throughout the summer, and probably beyond. “Lucky us because we have a track connection, but even so we recently wondered if some wagons went lost without a trace on their way from the east,” he says. Other points of concern are customs, not enough drivers, no pay hikes for transport services, and requirements for certifications of mesh transports, which many transporters refuse to meet.
