With an ex-US scrap booking done on late Friday, August 25, Turkey’s import scrap market remains stable.
SteelOrbis has learned that a Black Sea based producer concluded the ex-US scrap deal for 20,000 mt of P&S grade scrap and 10,000 mt of HMS I/II 95:5 scrap at the average price level of $395/mt CFR. Accordingly ex-US HMS I/II 80:20 scrap remains at $375/mt CFR, $1/mt higher than the previous ex-US scrap booking.
There is a rumour of an ex-EU scrap deal done by a Marmara-based producer for HMS I/II 80:20 scrap at $368/mt CFR, indicating a $0.5/mt increase on average for European scrap. This information was not confirmed by the time of publication.
Expectations for the current week are various. Some market players believe this week can be silent as Turkish mills’ needs are mostly completed for now. “They will start buying cargoes to shipped in the first half of October but I believe this week will be relatively quiet,” an ex-US scrap seller commented. “Traders are still in shock after Central Bank’s interest rate decision. Some producers seem to plan for maintenances or breaks from production, hence I believe prices will remain stable,” the same source said.
Another scrap supplier reports that the market is active, “There are buyers still in the market seeking for new cargoes. I believe deep sea scrap prices are still in the range of $370-375/mt CFR. Finished steel trading is on the low side, but producers did not give much response to the Central Bank’s move.” An ex-Europe scrap exporter reminds there is not enough scrap flow, “collection prices are still not falling. When there is more attractive prices in other regions, we focus on them instead of Turkey.” For now, Turkey’s import scrap market is expected to remain sideways.