Over the past week, demand in the Turkish import
scrap market has been lively with plenty of deals concluded. Most of the
scrap deals have been from
Europe and the Baltic region, while ex-
Europe deals have become more attractive due to the significant loss of strength of the euro against the US dollar.
At the beginning of last week, ex-
Europe deals to
Turkey for HMS I/II 75:25
scrap were concluded at $309/mt CFR, while at the end of the same week a Turkish producer concluded an ex-
Europe deal for HMS I/II 75:25
scrap at the price level of $305/mt CFR. In the same week, an ex-Baltic deal to
Turkey for HMS I/II 80:20
scrap was concluded at $320-321/mt CFR, indicating no change compared to the price levels seen one week earlier. In the current week a Turkish producer has concluded an ex-St. Petersburg deal for HMS I/II 80:20
scrap at $318/mt CFR.
Turkish producers have accelerated their
scrap purchases during the past week in order to replenish their stocks. As a result, a lot of deals have been heard in the market. Currently many
scrap suppliers are willing to conclude transactions. Hence, new deals may be heard in the coming days. However, Turkish producers have gained some relief with the
scrap purchases they concluded last week and they are not as eager as last week to conclude new deals. This may result in a reduced number of deals concluded in the market compared to last week. Turkish producers are expected to focus on finished steel sales in the coming days, while the demand volume for finished steel is expected to impact significantly on
scrap prices.
CIS billet suppliers have reduced their export offers by $5/mt compared to the pre-holiday period to $400/mt FOB. Also, following the upticks recorded last week, iron ore prices have started to decline again in the current week. These circumstances are expected to put downward pressure on
scrap prices.