Prices in the local Turkish
stainless steel market have been trending sideways, while demand from traders and end-users are still at moderate levels. With the rise in import duty, import activity in
Turkey for
stainless steel from
China and
Taiwan has diminished to a certain extent, while activity for European materials and for ex-works
stainless steel products in
Turkey has not slowed and inventory levels in the market have remained on the strong side. Expectations for higher nickel and
stainless steel prices after the New Year have also supported strong buying activity.
Far Eastern offers to
Turkey for prime quality ready stock 304/2B
stainless steel cold rolled coil (CRC) of 2.0 mm thickness are ranging at $2,300-2,400/mt CIF Istanbul, though Chinese and Taiwanese suppliers have continued to give aggressive offers to
Turkey to offset the eight percent import duty.
Meanwhile, nickel prices at the London Metal Exchange (LME) have fluctuated upward in the past two days, with prices at $13,785/mt for cash settlements as of the close of business yesterday, December 5. Significant changes in the international iron ore market are not expected in December, while it is observed that South Korea-based POSCO and
Taiwan's YUSCO have kept their
stainless steel offers unchanged for December orders as compared to their prices for November orders.