Issue 23, 2025 - This week's editorial: Cheaper Chinese billet draws attention, Europe demand deteriorates

Sometimes a phone call is all it takes. Iron ore rebounded on-day on Friday amid improved sentiment after Xi Jinping and Donald Trump held a promising call about trade tariffs, but still ended down on-week. Chinese domestic hot rolled coil prices ended the week unchanged, although the export market saw some low-priced deals. European HRC values declined amid cheaper import offers, while buyers waited and watched. Eurofer lowered its demand growth expectations for the region. Sentiment in Türkiye’s scrap import market meanwhile deteriorated as mills preferred increasingly cheaper Asia-origin billet, before Türkiye went on Eid holiday.

Market participants interpreted the Xi-Trump call as a sign of easing tariff pressure, which in turn supported buying activity in iron ore futures and spot markets. Friday’s iron ore values were up around $1/tonne versus Thursday but down almost $2/t on-week.

Chinese HRC prices recovered later in the week after initially falling amid a weak Chinese manufacturing PMI reading for May, as well as increasing HRC inventory and declining apparent consumption on-week.

Export values ticked down, with some deals heard done at just $435/t fob China, to buyers in Pakistan and the Gulf Cooperation Council. While some believed any prices below $435/t must be VAT-evading trades, others claimed this could be legitimate business.

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