Looking at European
wire rod markets, in this week's Bulgarian domestic market
wire rod prices have followed a sideways trend due to slack demand, remaining at BGN 985-990/mt ($680-683/mt) CPT. In the meantime, ex-CIS low carbon
wire rod offers to
Bulgaria are still standing at €475-480/mt ($641-648/mt) CIF on actual weight basis, for December deliveries.
Approaching the end of the year, fluctuations seen in the euro/dollar exchange rate are affecting
wire rod buyers' purchase decisions in the international markets.
This week, ex-
Spain mesh quality
wire rod offers have been at €505-510/mt ($682-689/mt) FOB, for shipments in late December and January. However, in
Turkey, one of Spanish mills' export markets, buyers are not showing much interest in this offer price level, due to the competitive price policies of Turkish domestic
wire rod mills and also the longer lead times and additional freight costs involved for Spanish material.
In November, African markets such as
Ghana,
Senegal and Kenya, and also
Peru in Latin America, were among
Turkey's major
wire rod export markets. Thus, it may be said that Turkish mills have turned to African and Latin American markets, due to the slackness in the
Middle East and also the sluggishness in
Europe caused by the financial instability in this latter region.