The moods in the import scrap segment of Turkey remain quite negative in view of the slow finished steel sales and due to a collapse in the rebar and billet prices in particular. The most recent deal from the EU has been closed with a slight discount and the mills are expected to push for even lower levels while being not in a rush to purchase, at least for now.
An ex-EU scrap cargo has been recently sold to Turkey’s Karadeniz region at $364/mt CFR for 10,000 mt of HMS I/II 80:20 and $385/mt CFR for 10,000 mt shredded scrap and 10,000 mt of bonus grade. The lot will be shipped from Netherlands at the end of August. With this transaction, the European HMS I/II 80:20 price in Turkey has decreased by another $3/mt since earlier this week.
Most of market sources believe that the mills would increase pressure on the scrap suppliers while facing troubles in selling their finished steel. Moreover, billet prices have sank below $490/mt CFR in certain talks while export rebar is at as low as $585/mt FOB. In addition, the HRC is at $670-690/mt ex-works due to limited competition, but the bids from large buyers are at as low as $630/mt ex-works, SteelOrbis has learned. All in all, it is not excluded that the Turkish mills wills also decrease their steel production and will have a series of maintenances, which will naturally decrease their demand for scrap, though temporarily.