Following a certain period of resistance to providing discounts, some of the Turkish mills have given in to the pressure from buyers. The demand in both export and local markets has remained dull, exerting pressure on the producers to lower their prices.
Currently, the highest domestic official HRC offers are now at $660/mt ex-works versus $670-690/mt ex-works indications a weak earlier. However, according to sources, the domestic price for large buyers may be lowered to $630-650/mt ex-works. The offers are for September deliveries. As regards exports, the lowest offers have been reported at $615-625/mt FOB depending on the supplier, down from $640/mt FOB on average over the past week.
In the import segment, Chinese offers for Q195 HRC of 3 mm and higher are mainly reported at $575-580/mt CFR, which is relatively stable over the past week. Offers from India vary in a rather wide range depending on the supplier and some are heard at $650/mt CFR, while others are at $610-615/mt CFR. However, there is information about a 30,000 mt sale in the past week at $595/mt CFR from India to a Turkish re-roller. Some sources consider this price as too high for the Turkish market considering the competitive offers from China. Others believe it may have been a top-up to the 5,000 mt purchased earlier at $592/mt CFR, which was reported by SteelOrbis. “Still, for 30,000 mt, the price should be lower, but it is also true that Indian HRC prices for other destinations are much higher,” one source stated.