Page 78 - UKRRptJul20

Ukraine) were at $300/t on June 5, 5% above their 2019 low of $285/t on November 1 and 10% below their 1Q20 high of $333/t on March 20.
The prices provided by Metal Expert are sophisticated estimates but they are not necessarily the same as the prices realized by Metinvest for its specific products.
Meantime, during a June 18 virtual press tour of Ilyich Steel, Metinvest’s CEO Yuriy Ryzhenkov said that during the 4Q19 price slump, steel prices were lower than during the 2Q20 slump. Ryzhenkov said that in 1Q20, prices rebounded 10-15% qoq and then dropped 5-7% in 2Q20. Yet prices have recently stabilized and a rebound is expected in part because of stimulus packages in China, the US and Europe, according to the CEO.
Also, Metinvest is not planning a restructuring, Ryzhenkov said, adding that the company is in constant dialogue with its investors and that refinancing existing debt with new debt of longer maturity and a lower interest rate is possible this year.
Metinvest is keeping its target steel production volumes at the level announced in the beginning of 2020 and has not revised its CapEx program, he also said. Recall, in the beginning of March Metinvest ​announced plans​ to increase crude steel production to 7.9-8.2 mmt in 2020, or 5-8% more y/y, and to lower its CapEx to $650mn, 38% less y/y.
● Interpipe
Pipe sales volume at Ukraine’s largest producer​ ​Interpipe​ was 46.6 kt in May, a 60.3% m/m jump​, according to the company’s monthly operational report for May released on June 22. Railway product sales gained 8.1% m/m to 18.7 kt, while external billet sales jumped 59.7% m/m to 3.0 kt. Total sales volume jumped 41.6% m/m to 68.6 kt. The m/m jump in pipe sales volume in May was driven by line pipes (+83.4% m/m to 32.8 kt) and welded pipes (+127% m/m to 8.7 kt), partially offset by OCTG pipes (-36.2% m/m to 3.9 kt). The m/m advance in railway product sales was driven by sales of wheels (+6.6% m/m to 16.2 kt) and wheelsets (+24.9% m/m to 1.9 kt). During 5M20, Interpipe’s pipe sales dropped 27.8% y/y to 188.1 kt, driven mostly by a 50.7% plunge for OCTG pipes to 40.3 kt and a 41.7% drop for welded pipes to 27.9 kt. Railway product sales in 5M20 jumped 17.9% y/y to 94.1 kt, driven mostly by a 15.8% rise for wheels to 82.9 kt and a 52.9% jump for wheelsets to 8.9 kt. Interpipe's share of pipe sales in Ukraine in 5M20 dropped 8pp from 2019 to 17%, and the share of sales in the Americas plunged 13pp to 11%. At the same time, Europe's share in pipe sales gained 10pp to 34%, and the share of MENA rose 8pp to 23%. The share of CIS countries in 5M20 rose 2pp to 12%. The share of its railway product sales in Ukraine in 5M20 dropped 7pp from 2019 to 15%, while the share of sales to Europe gained 6pp to 32% and the share of sales to CIS countries inched up 1pp to 46%. Regarding the production volumes, which might be indicative of sales volumes in future months, Interpipe’s production of pipes was flat m/m at 40.4 kt in May, while railway product output inched up 1.7% m/m to 17.6 kt. Steel production added 9.2% m/m to 60.8 kt. In the highlights section of its report, Interpipe noted that its linepipe sales recovered m/m in May amid lockdown-easing measures, while low oil prices globally continued undermining OCTG pipe sales.
The Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) reintroduced its 34.22%
78​ UKRAINE Country Report​ July 2020 ​ ​www.intellinews.com