Borcelik’s Sinan Sozen: Outlook not much brighter in 2013

At the SteelOrbis Market Talks Meeting held in the northwestern Turkish city of Bursa on March 15, Sinan Sozen, executive vice president of Borcelik, one of Turkey's leading cold rolled coil and galvanized sheet producers, said that the outlook for 2013 does not seem much brighter compared to last year, considering the effects of the debt crisis and the high unemployment levels in Europe as well as the lack of stability in the Middle East and North African (MENA) region. He added that the abovementioned regions are the main export markets for the domestic appliance and automotive industries which are among Borcelik's customers. Mr. Sozen indicated that, given sluggish demand and higher cost pressure, sudden increases and declines within a range of $10-40/mt might be seen in finished steel prices, though they will not be as sharp as in 2008.
 
Mr. Sozen stressed that, as a cold rolled and galvanized steel sheet producer, Borcelik acts both as a buyer and a seller in the steel industry, going on to say that purchasing from the domestic market has advantages such as operating under the same market conditions, sustainability and short deadlines. The Borcelik official said that galvanized steel sheet production capacity has increased in Turkey in recent years, adding that producers need to focus on high value-added products to maintain their presence in the market given that it is impossible, regarding commercial quality products, to compete with the CIS countries such as Ukraine and Russia which are self-sufficient in terms of raw materials.