Egypt's steel rebars see price hikes in August

Egypt's steel producers raised the monthly rebar prices in the domestic market by 4.2 percent in August, reported Al-Ahram's Arabic news website on Sunday.

Al-Ahram's Arabic news website cited Mohamed Hanafi, the director of the Metallurgical Industries Chamber (MIC) at Egypt's Industries Federation as saying that retail prices of locally produced steel rebars have jumped to LE5,280 per tonne in August from LE5,065 in July.

Hanafi has attributed the price increase to the government's decision to raise the cost of the natural gas, which is supplied to steel factories.

The decision became effective in July as a move to trim the state's energy subsidy bill saw the price of natural gas for the iron, steel, aluminium, copper, ceramic and glass industries rise from LE28 million ($4 million) to LE49 million ($7) per million thermal unit.

Ezz Steel is the dominant steel producer in Egypt and the Middle East at large, with around 55 percent of the Egyptian steel market.