Billet prices in the local Turkish billet market have this week gone up by approximately $30-40/mt compared to last week following the acceptance of higher finished steel prices in the local market and also due to the rising raw material prices. As of late this week rebar prices in the local Turkish market have been at $390-400/mt ex-works.
Meanwhile, over the last three weeks the Ukrainian billet producers had steadfastly kept their price levels from declining below $300/mt FOB Ukraine. International traders that had been willing to offer at levels lower than the Ukrainian producers' offers have had to revise their prices in an upward direction after it became clear that the Ukrainian producers were successfully holding their ground. The Ukrainian billet producers have since increased their price levels to $350/mt FOB, especially due to the positive developments in the local Turkish market. However, as of Thursday, November 6, it is heard that the Ukrainian producers are no longer making billet offers.
Billet prices have also been decreasing in the local Iranian market. In this market, prices have declined by $40-50/mt compared to last week's levels to the range of $600-630/mt. As is well known, supply is significantly higher than demand in the local Iranian billet market. In this context, billet prices have been dropping down due to the decreasing finished steel prices and the downtrend in end-user demand in this country.