At the SteelOrbis 2019 Spring Conference & 80th IREPAS Meeting held in Barcelona on April 7-9, F.D. Baysal from Seba International, the chairman of the traders committee, commented on Turkey’s alternative markets and said that Africa will by no means replace the US and the EU as a destination for Turkish exports, while pointing out that the Middle Eastern market is also close to Turkey. Mr. Baysal said there are not a lot of places the extra supply in Turkey could go to and the only solution is reducing capacity utilization.
Answering a question regarding the potential for Iran’s billet exports, Mr. Baysal said that Iran is not likely to produce steel any cheaper than Turkey, Saudi Arabia or Algeria, while sanctions make it almost impossible to buy Iranian steel.
The Seba International official stated that, while the Chinese government is taking serious measures and reducing production, Chinese suppliers will definitely not be absent from the global market but, as they are more contented in their domestic market, they will be less destructive in terms of pricing in the export markets. He added that the cut in VAT in China will help stimulate the economy.
Commenting on the recent increases in iron ore prices, the traders committee chairman said that these will not last too long as the weather conditions in Australia are improving, while he also recalled that electric arc furnaces are still more economical.