The year ends replete with ambiguity and gloom. The general perception is that bottom has been reached. The decision of some important North European Mill to idle BF will definitely have a positive impact in the New Year. HRC With the Russian mills having exhausted their quota of HRC for EU there has been a sudden drop in activity. Rubbing salt to the injury substantial depreciation of Euro v/s USD has made USD quotations prohibitive. East European countries such as Czech, Hungary and Poland are paying quite low prices for HRC and HRP. Price levels are around Euro 500 per tonne DDU which is unmatched by levels from EU mills due to long distance and freight. HRC from Ukraine are offered at prices around USD 600 per tonne CFRFO Italian and Spanish ports, pushing respective domestic Mills to keep low prices. As a result of the low consumption level, good quantities of distressed and over-rolling flat products are offered in different EU markets at discounted prices. HRP HRP producers have decided to increase prices aiming for Euro 600 per tonne basis EXW of September and early October. HDG Domestic producers like Riva and Marcegaglia in Italy have decided to sharply drop HDG prices down to Euro 500 - 510 per tonne basis for certain deals of important quantity. PPGI East European countries, specifically Poland and Ukraine are paying interesting prices for imported PPGI. It is learnt that an important deal of 8000 tonnes of PPGI was booked at a price around USD 1100 per tonne CFRFO from a Taiwanese mill. www.steelprices-europe.com is a comprehensive service for tracking real time steel prices and trends in both South and North Europe on weekly basis. The scope of service includes 1. Domestic pricing information in Germany, Italy and Spain 2. Import pricing information in Germany, Italy and Spain 3. Import levels at Antwerp and Turkey 4. Export levels from Turkey, Rotterdam, China, India and Black Sea The service is specifically designed to assist steel makers, traders, users and others connected with the industry to keep track of real time prices prevailing in the market and thus comprehensively evaluate steel pricing trends in the region

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