OREANDA-NEWS. September 28, 2010. Steel semis exports in August fell by 382 kT mom down to 730 kT, bringing the 8M2010 performance  0.4% lower than the previous year’s output. Revenues from sold semis declined even further by 38.9% mom, signifying lower prices for semi-manufactured steel.

The news is NEGATIVE for the Ukrainian steelmakers. The drop of semis exports is caused by the lack of Middle East demand due to Ramadan. This year semis exports’ “Ramadan break” (-34.5%) is almost 3 times as deep as last year (-12%). Nevertheless, the September figure should improve since the average prices for semis rose by 10% in Sep in anticipation of the Asian market picking up.