Three deep sea scrap bookings from late last week have surfaced in Turkey’s import scrap market today, September 11, with benchmark HMS I/II 80:20 scrap quotations remaining stable. Despite the very slight movements observed in these deals, prices are considered to be relatively stable.
An ex-US deal was done by a Marmara-based producer for HMS I/II 80:20 scrap at $377/mt CFR and shredded scrap at $397/mt CFR. The cargo is believed to be for shipment in early October. The previous ex-US deal was closed at $376/mt CFR.
Another ex-US booking is rumored to have been signed by a producer in Iskenderun. The cargo consists of 10,000 mt of HMS I/II 95:5 scrap and 20,000 mt of bonus grade scrap at the average level of $395/mt CFR. With the gap between HMS I/II 95:5 and HMS I/II 80:20 scrap considered to be $20/mt, the benchmark scrap price equals $375/mt CFR according to this deal.
Also, an ex-Denmark deal was done by an Izmir-based producer with HMS I/II 80:20 scrap standing at $372/mt CFR. This information was not confirmed by the buyer or the seller by the time of publication but is believed to be true by most market players. The previous ex-Baltic deal was done at $373/mt CFR.
Meanwhile, market sources throughout the US have expressed concerns that mills may try to become aggressive with prime grade scrap prices during the September buy-cycle. And while rumors had indeed swirled that mills might potentially attempt a down $50/gt number from August settled prices, everyone said they felt that the number “seemed a bit fanatical.” Additionally, HMS scrap prices are expected to remain stable in the US, despite the news about prime grades. A few import deals were fixed in Turkey for ex-Russia and ex-Donbass billet lots late last week, and suppliers’ aim to not go below $500/mt CFR has been successful. However, it is worth mentioning that the demand has been coming from Turkish merchant bar re-rollers, while the rebar mills still consider scrap usage to be more advantageous. In addition, there seems to be hardly any large billet lots currently available in the market, at least for shipments from the Black sea and Azov Sea. Early today, Turkish steel producers’ official rebar prices were at $580-590/mt ex-works, while an approximate $5-10/mt discount is possible for actual deals. What Turkish traders’ response to firm scrap prices will be this week is yet to be seen. For now, demand in the local rebar market is still slow, though some traders voiced their expectations of an increase in domestic rebar prices in the middle of the current week. Other traders still say domestic rebar prices should decline towards $570s/mt ex-works amid the lack of demand.